Gravity Falls: The Thousand Year Door
by 087-B
Summary: After Dipper, Mabel, and the rest of the Gravity Falls gang are sucked through a warp pipe, they end up in the Mushroom Kingdom! Dipper and Pacifica arrive at the town of Rogueport, and after meeting a man named Mario, they're thrust into an adventure in search of their friends, Princess Peach, and a thousand year old treasure. Rated T to be safe. *CHAPTER 3 COMING SOON*
1. Prologue - Part 1: Welcome to Rogueport

_Prologue: A Rogue's Welcome - Part 1 - Welcome To Rogueport_

What was a strange day filled with mystery could be considered a normal day in the small town of Gravity Falls, Oregon. Dipper and Mabel wandered through the forest, Dipper holding the Journal #3, looking for a mysterious tube that was hidden deep within the forest.

After pushing past a few trees and a few minutes of searching, they had come into a clearing. Inside that clearing, a small green pipe had emerged from the ground, covered in moss and vines.

"Do you think that's it?" Dipper asked Mabel. Mabel looked at the page in the book.

"Looks like the picture, right?" Mabel asked as well. Dipper walked over to the pipe and looked inside. It seemed to go down forever, nothing but endless darkness. He noticed a button on the side. His instinct told him not to press it, but his curiosity pushed his hand forward, slowly pressing the button.

Nothing happened.

"Well, this was a waste." Dipper said. "Come on Mabel, let's go back home." Dipper and Mabel trudged back toward the Mystery Shack, but the pipe began giving off a bright light, before sucking in anything around it. Dipper grabbed onto a tree, while Mabel held on to Dipper. The force of the suction was so strong, it seemed to be pulling the residents of Gravity Falls in as well. So many people flew past the two, falling into the pipe. Dipper's arm grew tired, and without hesitation, let go of the tree, and the two fell into the depths of the pipe along eith the rest of Gravity Falls…

:::::

Dipper slowly opened his eyes, looking around. Rubbing his eyes, he could see the bright sun in the sky, along with a few clouds. Getting up, he noticed he was on a small wooden raft, in the middle of the vast ocean.

"Oh, you're awake." Dipper turned around and saw Pacifica Northwest, the most popular girl in Gravity Falls.

"Pacifica? What happened?" Dipper asked.

"I woke up on this raft. I saw you in the ocean, and I don't like seeing people drown, so I pulled you on board." Pacifica answered. "Now we're just stuck here in the middle of the ocean."

Dipper stood up and stared out into the ocean. On the horizon, Dipper could see… something that looked like a small village.

"Look, over there." Dipper pointed out into the ocean, and Pacifica followed his gaze. "That might be something. Let's paddle." Dipper began using his arms to paddle the makeshift raft toward the town. Pacifica hesitated for a moment, before rolling up her sleeves and paddling as well.

It took quite some time, but the two had arrived at the small port town. It was a very dingy looking area, the air had a crude smell. The two looked around a bit.

"Where are we?" Dipper asked.

"Aye! You two mateys are in the town of Rogueport!" Dipper and Pacifica turned to see who was talking to them, and were shocked to see a bomb, a blue one with two, white eyes and two feet, and a bandana around its forehead.

"Um… are you a bomb?" Dipper asked.

"As sure as the ocean is cruel! Although the actual term is "Bob-omb" for your information, mate." The bomb walked off, and the two noticed a few other bombs walking around, as well as a larger, purple bomb with an eye patch, and even a few people dressed in ragged clothing and hats that looked like mushrooms.

"Seriously Dipper, where are we?" Pacifica asked. Dipper looked at a sign nearby. In old, worn out writing, Dipper read it aloud.

"It says 'Welcome to the port town of Rogueport. Population: 97.'" Dipper looked around the small dock area. "That bomb was right. This town is called Rogueport."

"I don't like that name." Pacifica said. "It has 'Rogue' in it. Obviously this town is bad news."

"Then we should be careful around here." Dipper said. "Let's not talk to everyone. Who knows who could be a thief." Dipper and Pacifica walked toward the center of the dock site, before hearing a screech. Turning, the two of them saw a small mushroom girl with two brown feet and a miner helmet, with a blonde ponytail showing. In front of her were two small men in red and white overcoats, and a taller one in a red and purple overcoat.

"Alright, young missy. We know you've been asking around about those Crystal Stars." The purple one said. "Now hand over dat information!"

"Like I'd ever be affiliated with the likes of you creeps!" The mushroom girl yelled. Dipper noticed a stick nearby and grabbed it. Then, he took a step forward.

"Hey!" Dipper yelled, getting their attention. "Leave her alone!"

"Oh yeah, punk? What are you gonna do to us?" The purple one sarcastically asked. Dipper rushed the purple overcoated man and smacked him in the head with the stick, knocking him backwards. Recovering from his momentary daze, the man in the purple overcoat became enraged.

"So you think you can just pummel Lord Crump and get away with it?" The purple one yelled, calling himself Lord Crump. "Seize them!" The white overcoats grabbed Dipper, the mushroom girl, and Pacifica, pinning them down.

"Ack! Let go of us!" Dipper struggled to get free. Lord Crump chuckled before getting sent flying backward, along with the small overcoats. The three of them looked up to see a man in a red shirt, blue overalls, and white gloves. He had worn out, brown leather boots on, and a distinctive bushy mustache. He was holding a brown wooden hammer, and also sported a red cap with a red 'M' on it.

"I thought you could use help." The man said. He helped the three up. Lord Crump got up from the ground.

"You think you can beat me? How about this?!" Lord Crump pulled out a walkie-talkie and yelled into it. In a few seconds, a lot of the little overcoats appeared, surrounding the four. "PUMMEL THEM!"

The little overcoats jumped everywhere, creating a heaping mass of them. They kept running and jumping, trying to trap the four. The small mushroom girl ran out from the crowd.

"Hurry! This way!" She yelled, and the man, along with Dipper and Pacifica, quickly followed. The man didn't seem too shocked by what happened, but Dipper and Pacifica were utterly petrified. They didn't know where they were or what was happening, but it definitely wasn't good.

The four of them ran up a set of stairs and entered into the main square of the town. As soon as they did so, however, Lord Crump noticed their absence.

"Wait a second, STOP!" He yelled. All of the white overcoats stopped their attack and gathered around Lord Crump.

"Where did they go?" Lord Crump questioned. "You! Johnson! Did you see them? Did ANYONE see them?" All of the little overcoats seemed confused.

"Uh…" Lord Crump looked around. "Crud! They bolted!"

:::::

The four gathered in the town square of Rogueport. This area of town was a bit more busy, containing a shop, an inn, and a back alley, as well as a pub and a few other buildings.

"Oh geez, that was intense!" The mushroom girl said. "I don't think any of us know each other, so lets start with some introductions."

"My name is Dipper. Dipper Pines." Dipper said, a bit out of breath. "What is this place anyway?"

"This is Rogueport of the Mushroom Kingdom. Didn't you know that?" The mushroom girl asked.

"No, I don't even know what a 'Mushroom Kingdom' is! I'm from the state of Oregon on Earth!" Dipper said.

"I hail from Earth as well." The man said. "The name is Mario. I came from Brooklyn in New York."

"Wait, Mario? As in, Super Mario? The famous guy?!" The mushroom girl said. "Omigosh! What are you even doing here?"

"I came here looking for Princess Peach." Mario said. "Who are you?"

"Me? I'm Goombella! A high honors graduate from the University of Goom!" The mushroom girl said, calling herself Goombella. "Go Goombas!"

"Don't forget me!" Pacifica said annoyed. Mario, Goombella, and Dipper turned to face her. "My name is Pacifica. Pacifica Northwest. The most popular girl in Gravity Falls. The pleasure is all mine."

"She's a little full of herself." Mario whispered to Dipper, who nodded in reply.

"So wait a second, why are you looking for Princess Peach, Mario?" Goombella asked.

"Who's Princess Peach?" Dipper and Pacifica asked in unison.

"She rules over the Mushroom Kingdom." Mario replied. "She sent me a letter saying she found a treasure map, and that she wants me to come and aid her in finding the treasure. Why are you here, Goombella?"

"Me? I'm here for the intrigue and mystery, but I already HATE it here!" Goombella replied. "I mean, every time you turn a corner, you get mugged! It's just terrible around here, especially with the mafia going around." Goombella shuddered. "So what about you kids? Why are you here?"

"Well, you see… we just woke up on a raft in the middle of the ocean and saw this town in the distance." Dipper said. "We thought about paddling here for help, and… that's about it. We don't know what this place is, but we… we…" Dipper was lost in thought.

"Is something wrong?" Mario asked.

"…before we showed up in the ocean, me and my sister, Mabel, found this big, green pipe. We pushed a button on it, and it sucked everyone from my town into it." Dipper said. "My sister could be somewhere in this world. She could be in danger!" The others were silent for a while.

"Hmm… It's unlikely that we may run into them, but we will keep an eye out." Mario said.

"So Mario, what's this about a treasure map?" Goombella asked.

"Yeah, I'd like to know about that too." Pacifica said. Mario pulled out a worn out map.

"Oh wow! This looks like the fabled Magical Map from the legends!" Goombella exclaimed. "We should get my professor to look at this! He lives right here in this town! Let's go!" Goombella walked off with Mario following. He turned to face the two children.

"Are you two coming?" Mario asked. Dipper and Pacifica nodded and followed. They were stuck in a new world now, with no knowing of what was to come. All they knew was that their friends and family were out there somewhere, and this 'Mario' person has a connection to Earth. For now, all they could do was follow Mario and Goombella, and hope to seek out the answers to their questions.

**-(End Of Chapter)-**

**The start of my new crossover, this time with one of my most favorite games of all time, and my favorite Mario game of all time, Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door! I hope you enjoyed this first chapter, as more will come as time continues! Sorry for the transition from Gravity Falls to Roguport being very fast, but I was really eager to get to the main plot. If I missed anything, just let me know. But, as always…**

**Stay Tuned!**

**~087-B**


	2. Prologue - Part 2: The Millennium Door

**Hey guys, 087-B here, bringing you a new chapter of Gravity Falls: The Thousand Year Door! In the last chapter, Dipper and Pacifica woke up in the ocean off the coast of the port town of Rogueport. Upon arrival, the two met a man named Mario and a goomba named Goombella. Now the four are searching for Goombella's university professor in hopes of deciphering Mario's mysterious map.**

**Now, on with the show!**

_Prologue: A Rogue's Welcome - Part 2 - The Millennium Door_

The four had wandered through the central area of Rogueport. It had a northern back alley, a southern exit to the docks, a western exit to another part of town, and an eastern exit to another part of town. Heading into the eastern area a man in a blue overcoat and a mask dashed by Mario.

"Oops, pardon me, sucker!" The man said, zooming past Mario at incredible speeds.

"Hey punk! What's your problem?! Yeah, I'm talking to you!" Goombella yelled. But she noticed something different about Mario.

"Mario, look! Half your coins are gone!" Goombella said. Mario was confused, but upon checking his pockets, he noticed Goombella was right. Half of his coins were all that remained in his pockets.

"You gotta get out of that daze, Mario! That guy just stole your money!" Goombella ran off toward the man, shouting and cursing at him. Mario turned to Dipper and Pacifica.

"You two won't mind being alone?" He asked. Dipper and Pacifica looked around the area. It was old, dank, and it had the same crude smell that lingered in the air.

"Um… Yeah, I think we'll be alright." Dipper said. Mario simply nodded and ran off toward Goombella. With nothing to do, Pacifica leaned against a wall, only to fall backwards. Dipper looked at the wall and noticed a part of it was pushed back. Intrigued, he walked behind the wall into the secret passage.

"Hey! Help me up!" Pacifica yelled to Dipper, who simply ignored her. Hesitant, Pacifica pulled herself up off the ground, quickly wiping her hands on her jeans and running back over to Dipper.

Inside the passage was a table and a few chairs, as well as a few inhabitants of Rogueport, such as a man in a blue overcoat like the one from before, and a man with green skin, yellow eyes, and leather clothing that shrouded his forehead.

Immediately, Pacifica walked around a corner in the passage and returned holding a golden rhombus that sparkled in the sunlight.

"What _is_ that?" Dipper asked.

"A piece of a star, or a Star Piece for short." Pacifica answered. "It's hit jewelry in some countries back on Earth. I guess Star Pieces exist here too." She put it in her pocket and looked around. "Can we leave now? This dirty town is too unfitting for me."

Dipper was about to answer before something hit him in the top of the head. Dazed, Dipper stumbled around before slumping over on to a wall. After a moment, Dipper regained his senses and got back up once more. Pacifica was holding a wooden staff with a green orb on the end. She turned to see Dipper upright.

"It fell off the roof and landed on your head." Pacifica said. She tossed it to Dipper. "Considering we got attacked earlier today, I think that it would make a suitable weapon for you."

"Don't _you_ need a weapon?" Dipper asked.

"Who said I would be fighting?" Pacifica scoffed. "Honestly, fighting is for boys, I don't need to get involved." Dipper just stared.

"…you do realize that we're in an alternate universe, right?" Dipper asked. Pacifica nodded. "It could be very dangerous here. You need to be able to protect yourself one way or another, whether you like it or not." Dipper heard Mario calling for them. "Come on, they're waiting for us."

The two of them exited the passage to see Mario and Goombella waiting for them. Mario noticed the staff in Dipper's hands. Dipper followed Mario's gaze and answered the question in his mind.

"It fell off a roof and landed on my head." Dipper said. "It could make a good weapon, I guess." Mario nodded in agreement, seeing as this town could be very dangerous.

"What are we waiting for?" Goombella said, getting impatient. "The professors house is right over here! Come on!" Goombella led the others to a small house with a red, wooden door.

"You sure this is his house?" Mario asked. Goombella nodded. Dipper reached for the handle and pulled the door open.

:::::

Wendy awoke, rubbing her head. She was completely unaware of where she was, but she was lying a piece of wood. Rubbing her eyes, she looked around. She was on a bridge over a moat, and on both sides of her was a castle of sorts.

"Where the heck am I?" She asked herself, getting up. Quickly, her thoughts were interrupted as she heard roaring over head. Looking up, she saw a large, red dragon with a hook like tail flying over the castle. Frightened, Wendy noticed a piece of land that lead to underneath the bridge. She ran over and ducked under the bridge, and successfully hid from the dragon.

When everything went quiet again, she was about to go back up, but she noticed a strange object underneath the other end of the bridge. It was a yellow triangle with a heart in the middle, and the only way to get to it was by jumping across some small pieces of land that stuck out from the water. Curios, Wendy decided to go after it.

She jumped from each piece of land to the next, only falling in the water once. Upon getting to the other side, she picked up the strange object. A note was attached. She read it aloud.

"HP Plus Badge. Requires 3 BP to wear. Raises your max HP by 5 when worn." Wendy seemed confused, but she decided to pin it on to her shirt anyway. Immediately, she felt a bit more livelier, but she knew that this was probably unimportant, and she needed to get out of wherever she was.

:::::

Dipper, Pacifica, Mario, Goombella, and another goomba with some white hair and glasses, the professor, walked out of the building. Dipper turned to the professor.

"Now, if the legend is true, Professor Frankly, then that means a thousand year old door rests beneath Rogueport?" Dipper asked. Frankly nodded.

"I'm still having a hard time processing all of this." Pacifica said, rubbing her head. "This legend seems a bit… out there."

"I agree." Dipper said. "But it does make a little sense." He took out a book and read aloud from it. "The one with the Magical Map of lore, should hold it in front of the Thousand Year Door. Destiny shines with all its might, to show the Crystal Stars of light." He put the book away.

"So, the basic goal here is what?" Pacifica asked.

"The basic goal is to find this thousand year door, and have Mario hold the Magical Map in front of it." Dipper answered. "I guess it will lead us to the Crystal Stars, which will help us find the treasure and, hopefully, the location of Princess Peach."

"How do you remember all this stuff?" Mario asked.

"The town I live in is a strange one." Dipper answered. "You pick up a few things, such as an expansive memory and a great way of understanding things."

"Well, we shouldn't waste anymore time!" Frankly said. He walked over to a fence and pulled a piece off of it, causing a part of the fence to come loose and break off, revealing an opening that led to a green pipe. "Let's go! Into the sewers!"

"I guess that makes sense." Goombella said. "The sewers are underground, so it would make sense for the thousand year door to be underground."

Dipper, Mario, and Goombella walked over to Frankly and the pipe, but Pacifica stayed behind.

"Pacifica, aren't you coming?" Mario asked. Pacifica shook her head.

"I'm not going in the filthy, yucky, rotten, super gross sewers!" Pacifica said. Dipper sighed and grabbed her arm and pulled her toward the pipe, pushing her inside. She went straight down into the sewers screaming. The gang chuckled a bit before Dipper jumped inside, followed by Mario, Goombella, and finally Frankly.

:::::

The five emerged from a pipe inside of the sewers. Pacifica's screaming died down, and now she simply remained quiet, not moving an inch from where she stood.

"The sewers…" Pacifica's eye twitched. Dipper sighed.

"She'll be like that for a while." Dipper looked around. The area they were in had two ways to go. On his left, there was a doorway to another area. On his right, there were some stairs leading downward, followed by stairs leading upward, a floating platform, and some other areas. Dipper raised his staff, and Mario raised his hammer.

"It could be dangerous down here." Mario said. "Stay close, and be ready." The five walked down the stairs before hearing some yelling.

"Whoa nelly! What's a fine looking goomba like you doing with some fat Italian plumber and two idiot children like them?" The group looked up at the top of the stairs in front of them to see a normal goomba, a goomba with a spiked cap, and a goomba flying in the air with wings.

"Wait, are you talking to me?" Goombella sarcastically asked. "I'm so flattered that you like me! It's like- so totally gross!" The other goombas looked angry.

"Hey! Nobody disses us like that!" the goomba yelled. "Come on boys, let's get them!"

The three goombas jumped down from the stairs, and the others prepared to fight. Frankly stayed out of the fight, taking a step back, followed by Pacifica, leaving Mario, Dipper, and Goombella to fend for themselves.

The normal goomba leaped into the air and bashed its head on Dipper, who fell backwards. Getting back up, Dipper raised his staff and smashed it downward on the normal goomba, sending it flying. Mario took a swing at the flying goomba, but he couldn't quite hit it.

"Mario! Dipper!" Frankly called. "The paragoomba is an airborne enemy! It can't be hit with a melee weapon! Rely on jumping or using an item!" Mario nodded and jumped upwards, land a blow on the paragoomba's head, knocking it down to the ground.

Goombella pulled out a little green book and flipped through some pages, glancing at the spiked cap goomba.

"Ah ha! That's a spiky goomba!" Goombella said. "You can't jump on it, obviously. Max HP is 2, Attack is 2, Defense is 1. That spike raises its attack power, so be wary of it, and take it out as fast as you can!"

Dipper swung his staff at the spiky goomba, landing a blow on its side, knocking it into a wall. The normal goomba bashed into Dipper from behind, knocking him over. The spiky goomba got up and was about to get his revenge on Dipper. He ran by Pacifica to get to him, and in the process, kicked up dust on to Pacifica's clothes. Her eyes widened, and she quickly flew into a rage.

"You got dust on my clothes!" Pacifica rapidly punched at the spiky goomba, knocking it into the grounded paragoomba, knocking them both unconscious. Frightened, the normal goomba tried to run, only to be smacked in the head by a headbonk from Goombella, sending it flying into the other goombas.

"Okay, okay! We'll leave you alone!" The normal goomba yelled as the other goombas regained consciousness. "Come on boys! Let's scram!" The normal goomba ran off deep into the sewers, followed by the paragoomba and the spiky goomba.

Pacifica exited her rage, and simply felt a little more comfortable being in the sewers now.

"Well… that was eventful." Pacifica said.

"Indeed." Frankly agreed. "But we have to press on! Let's go!"

:::::

The five entered through a passage, and the room they were now in was massive, containing a large amount of ancient rubble, as well as another passage on the other side of the room. But what really stood out was the massive red and golden door that took up most of the back wall.

"This is it! The Thousand Year Door is here!" Frankly exclaimed. "The legend really is true!" He, Mario, and Goombella walked off toward the door. Pacifica was about to follow, but Dipper stopped her.

"Here." Dipper handed her a walkie-talkie.

"What's this for?" Pacifica asked.

"If we get separated, we should at least have a ways of communicating with each other." Dipper answered. "It's safer that way."

Pacifica simply nodded, and out the walkie-talkie in her pocket. The two then ran over to rejoin the group.

"What the heck?" Goombella noticed a pedestal in the middle of a big platform. "What's with that pedestal?"

"It's probably where Mario has to hold up the Magical Map." Dipper said. "It just makes sense, right?" The others nodded. Mario took out his Magical Map and stepped on to the platform, then stepped on to the pedestal.

Facing the door, Mario held up the Magical Map, and very quickly, in almost a split second, the room lit up as blue light patterns began forming on the platform. The others were surprised as a bright light fell from the ceiling and landed on the map, bursting into pieces as the map hovered in the air. Then, in an instant, the map returned to Mario's hands, and the lights faded. The others looked at the map. A castle had formed on the map near the top right corner, and a gray star appeared on the image of the castle.

"I think the map just recorded the location of a Crystal Star!" Goombella said.

"We better bring the map back to my house for an analysis." Frankly said. "I might be able to decipher where this is."

**-(End Of Chapter)-**

**Whew! This chapter was LONG! But, I guess that will become a regular thing in this story!**

**So, it appears Dipper and Pacifica have the low-down on the legend and now assist Mario, Goombella, and Professor Frankly in finding it. Also, we got a glimpse at where Wendy is! At first, I wanted it to be Mabel, but I thought about that cliché 'damsel in distress' sort of thing, so I went with Wendy in place of Mabel, but there will be no romance in this fic. I also found an even better place for Mabel to be! Can you guess? Anyway, enough of my rambling. Just remember to…**

**Stay Tuned!**

**~087-B**


	3. Prologue - End: Reaching Petal Meadows

**Hey guys, 087-B here again with another chapter. I'll be writing chapters for this story for now, mainly because I enjoy Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door too much to do something other than it… Okay, I'm not THAT obsessed with the game, but I love the game. It's too great for words.**

**In the last chapter, Dipper, Pacifica, Mario, and Goombella met up with Professor Frankly, and they traveled into the sewers to find the Thousand Year Door, and they were met with success! Now Mario's Magical Map contains the location of the first Crystal Star, and the group has to find out where it is. Let's go see what they're up too, shall we?**

**Now, on with the show!**

_Prologue: A Rogue's Welcome - Part 3 - Reaching Petal Meadows_

Back in the above town Rogueport, the five group members where back in Professor Frankly's house, looking over the map, trying to find out where the first Crystal Star was located.

"Look, if you go here…" Dipper pointed at a piece of the Rogueport Sewers on the map, then followed a small trail to a picture of a field on the map. "…then this field kind of leads to the castle- wait, nope. It leads to a town."

"But look, if you go past the town… wait, never mind." Pacifica said, trying to pinpoint the Crystal Star's location.

"You do realize I've already figured out where this is, right?" The others turned to see Professor Frankly.

"Where is it, Professor?" Goombella asked. Professor Frankly pushed the others aside to look at the map. He stared at it for quite some time, while the others looked over his hypothetical shoulder.

"…It's in a field. I don't know where the field is though." The others sighed really loudly.

"Wait a second…" The others became intrigued again.

"The Crystal Star appears to be located in a place called Petal Meadows." Frankly said.

"Petal Meadows? Where's that?" Mario asked.

"If I remember correctly, a pipe in the Rogueport Sewers leads to Petal Meadows." Frankly answered. "I've heard the name 'Petal Meadows' come up in my research from time to time, but I never thought a Crystal Star was hidden here…"

"It can't be hard to find it, then." Dipper said. "We've found our way around the sewers, heck, we found the Thousand Year Door."

"What are you getting at?" Pacifica asked.

"What I'm saying is, if we're able to find the Thousand Year Door, I'm pretty sure we can find the pipe to Petal Meadows." Dipper answered.

"Then we're off!" Goombella said.

"Wait!" Frankly stopped them. "Mario, when you held up the map, I'm pretty sure you gained some strength from the map, correct? Do you think you possess some sort of a… 'Special Move' of sorts?"

"Hmm… now that you mention it…" Mario began. "I guess I do feel a bit more powerful."

"Then that settles it! You three, go along and explore Rogueport." Frankly said to the others. "I'll stay here and teach Mario about his new Special Move."

"Um… okay, Professor." Goombella said. "You seem to know what you're doing."

"Of course I know what I'm doing!" Frankly said. "Now go on!"

Goombella and Pacifica exited the home, but Frankly stopped Dipper.

"Boy, you might need this." He handed Dipper a small pin with a note attached. The pin looked like a little gray hammer with one spike coming out from the top, the left end, and the right end.

"What is this?" Dipper asked.

"It's called a badge." Frankly answered. "Having it pinned on to you might help you in battles. It may be useful later on."

:::::

Dipper exited the building to meet up with Pacifica and Goombella. The two girls were chatting by the entrance to the sewers. It seemed they were bonding. Dipper read the note attached to the badge to himself.

"Power Smash Badge. Requires 1 BP to wear. When worn, allows the user to attack with a powerful smash causing double the normal damage. Wearing 2 or more of these badges increases the power." Dipper seemed intrigued and pinned the badge on to his hat. He assumed it would be useful in a battle later on.

He walked over to the two girls and overheard a bit of their conversation.

"…and so Elizagoom says she'll be the better archeologist, and I'm like, 'Oh no she didn't!'" Goombella said.

"She reminds me of this one girl named…" Pacifica stopped when she noticed Dipper smirking nearby.

"You two girls bonding?" Dipper jokingly asked.

"Yeah, Pacifica is really kind!" Goombella said happily. "She's like me, except human!"

"Well, it's good to see Pacifica getting used to this world faster than I am." Dipper said.

"I'm not entirely used to it." Pacifica said. "Honestly, it still feels really weird here."

"I can understand that." Dipper said. "I've never been away from Mabel this long… I really miss her." Dipper sat down solemnly. Goombella walked over to him.

"Hey, I'm sure we'll find her!" Goombella consoled. "Like you said, if we can find the Thousand Year Door, we can find the pipe to Petal Meadows!" Dipper smiled a little. "She should turn up eventually! Maybe she's in Petal Meadows!"

"…you have a good point, Goombella." Dipper said, getting up. "Well, we have time to kill, so let's split up and explore Rogueport." He turned to Goombella. "Goombella, you seem to know this place well. Take Pacifica around, have some girl time."

"You got it!" Goombella chirped. She and Pacifica headed off into town, while Dipper decided to do some research on this place, preferably research about the Mushroom Kingdom in general.

:::::

Wendy cautiously walked down one of the many halls of the castle. She had encountered many anthropomorphic turtles with sunglasses, and some even had wings. On rare occasions, she would find a walking pile of bones that resembled the turtles from before. However, she never felt like she was losing energy.

She entered another room and leaned against a wall, tired from running away from the monsters just minutes earlier. She looked at the pin she had put on her shirt. It seemed to give off an energy of sorts, as if it were keeping her alive.

"HP means… what does it mean?" Wendy asked herself. "Health Points? Hit Points? Heart Power?" She didn't know where she was or what this pin was or did. All she knew was she was lost.

She got up from the wall and noticed a little green box nearby with a spinning triangle inside. Curios, she kicked it. It lit up and caused a larger, black and green box nearby to light up and begin to rise. Seeing it as a possible way to escape from the castle, she dashed toward it and jumped, grabbing the edge. As the box rose upward, she pulled herself up and over the edge. When the box stopped moving, Wendy met a set of stairs leading upward. Without hesitation, she walked up the stairs and found an incredibly large purple door.

Opening it, she found herself on a large bridge, hanging over the castle grounds and connecting to a large, tall tower on the other side. The sky had darkened with dark clouds, and the sun seemed to have set. Anthropomorphic turtles and winged turtles guarded the bridge, and seeing as there was no other way around it, Wendy ran forward. The monsters tried to stop her, but to no avail. She made it to the other side without a scratch, and met a large spiral staircase. She climbed up it, as it was her only escape from the anthro monsters.

"Almost to the top…" Wendy climbed for what seemed like an eternity before finally reaching the top. A spiked goomba was blocking her path, and bashed its spiked head into her torso. She fell backwards, but quickly picked herself back up. She dodged another attack and kicked the helmet off the spiked goomba. Frightened, the now normal goomba ran off down the stairs. Wendy saw a wooden rod nearby and grabbed it. She then pulled the spike off of the helmet and stuck it to top of the rod. Some string was also on the helmet that held the spike down. She tied the spike to the rod with the string, and she finally had a weapon to defend herself. She also grabbed the now spikeless helmet and placed it on her head.

She heard a loud roar from a room above her. Going up a few more stairs, she found an even larger purple double door, leading to a colosseum like room. She slowly pushed the doors open. On the other side, a large red dragon with a hook like tail.

"Who disturbs my slumber?" The dragon roared.

Wendy readied her spear, prepared for battle.

:::::

It was mid-evening in Rogueport, and Goombella and Pacifica had decided to do some shopping in the West side of Rogueport. Goombella sported a small red tie around her hypothetical neck, and a shiny new helmet. Pacifica sported a nice pair of sunglasses and a fashionable purple shirt with a Life Shroom pattern on it.

"Now that was some wonderful shopping!" Pacifica said happily. "I didn't know Rogueport had such a wonderful boutique! I mean, this town is a dump."

"Tell me about it!" Goombella chirped. "The west side of Rogueport is the cleanest and nicest!"

"This is much better than fighting monsters in the sewers." Pacifica said. Goombella stopped.

"About that…" Goombella began. Pacifica stopped walking to look at her.

"What about it?" Pacifica asked.

"You need to find a weapon, or at least some way to protect yourself during battle, Pacifica." Goombella said.

"I don't need to." Pacifica scoffed. "I just have Mario and Dipper battle for me."

"But what if you get separated?" Goombella asked. "If you end up alone in a battle, what happens next?" Pacifica was about to reply, but stopped to think about it. Goombella was right. She needed to learn how to fight.

"…where do I go to learn how to fight?" Pacifica asked. Goombella smiled.

"Glad to see you're ready to start learning." She said. "Now, we should probably go to the Trouble Center."

"What's the Trouble Center?" Pacifica asked.

"The description of it says that it's a place where people go to help others who have problems they can't solve on their own." Goombella answered.

"Sounds more like a place people go to when they're too lazy to do chores and make other people do them for them." Pacifica said. The two of them chuckled.

"It's located in the eastern area of Rogueport." Goombella said. "Let's go."

The two walked a bit further, exiting the West area of Rogueport back to the central area, before hearing someone yell.

"STOP!" Goombella and Pacifica stopped in their tracks and turned to see an older lady dressed in mushroom like clothing. "Don't move another inch!"

"What's wrong, Zess T.?" Goombella asked.

"Someone dung for brains idiot bumped in to me earlier!" The lady named Zess T. yelled. "He made me lose a contact lens, so I would appreciate it if you didn't move at all!"

"I don't have time for this." Pacifica scoffed. She was about to take step forward when Goombella stopped her.

"What are you doing?!" Goombella asked.

"I'm trying to get to East Rogueport." Pacifica said coldly. "I don't have time to help this old bat!"

"Who are you calling old bat?!" Zess T. shouted.

"She didn't mean it!" Goombella shouted back. "She's not thinking before she speaks!"

"Oh, I'm thinking before I speak, alright." Pacifica said.

"Pacifica, you need to be nice to people in this town." Goombella reminded her. "One wrong slip up, and you're going to get beat up, most likely robbed or killed." Pacifica ignored her friend. "This town is incredibly dangerous! You were so nice earlier, can't you see that you're not the most important person in the world?!"

"I **am** the most important person in the world!" Pacifica yelled. She stormed off, crushing the contact lens in the process.

"No! My contact lens!" Zess T. cried. Pacifica stormed off to the inn, probably back to the groups rented room.

"I'll pay for it! Don't worry!" Goombella reassured Zess T. about her promise.

Pacifica shoved the door to their room open and just fell flat on the bed. Goombella was right about all those things she said. Pacifica thought about herself. She wasn't popular in this world. She wasn't important in this world. She needed to do things for herself and others, instead of making others do things for her. Tears trickled down her face as she realized what a horrible person she had been.

:::::

The next morning, the group met outside the sewers. Mario had returned to the group with the new ability he called Sweet Treat. He explained the move summoned a cloud of miniature Crystal Stars that dropped pictures of the group members. Mario could throw little holographic stars from the magical map at the icons, and depending on which ones he hit, he would heal certain members of the party. The others were intrigued by the new ability. Now that they were prepared, the four headed down into the sewers to search for the pipe to Petal Meadows. Mario and Dipper walked ahead, while Pacifica and Goombella fell behind.

"I'm sorry about what I said yesterday." Pacifica said to Goombella.

"It's fine." Goombella replied. "You seem to be under a lot of stress, Pacifica."

"I am under a lot of stress, Goombella." Pacifica said. "I'm still not used to this world. It's just too… different from my own."

"That explains a lot." Goombella said.

"I say things and do things without thinking because I feel like it's the only thing to do in this world." Pacifica looked down at the ground solemnly.

"Just stick to us, okay?" Goombella reassured her. "I'll help you get used to this place." Pacifica smiled a bit. "Let's focus on finding Petal Meadows for now, okay?"

"Right." Pacifica agreed, and the two caught up with the group.

They had come to a gap in the path. Mario had used his incredible jump to reach the other side. He held out his hand, and Dipper jumped over grabbing Mario's wrist. He pulled himself up, and the girls quickly followed in getting over. A single door rested near them. When they entered, they saw a small little wooden dock, as well as an underground ocean of sorts. Across the water was a small stone platform with an old, rocky looking pipe in the center of it. Poking out of the water was a slimy, soggy tentacle.

"That pipe over there might be it." Dipper said, pointing to the pipe. He rubbed his chin. "But how do we get to it?" The others were distracted by the tentacle. Curious, Mario decided to smack it with his hammer. The tentacle vibrated a bit before shooting back into the water. Everything was silent for a moment, but the water began to bubble.

In a split second, a giant, white squid burst out of the water. Goombella and Pacifica shrieked, and Mario was surprised for a second but readied his hammer. Dipper was distracted by his thoughts, but upon hearing the shrieks, turned to see the large squid. He reached for his staff and remembered the badge Professor Frankly gave him.

Goombella looked through her tattle log and identified the squid as a Blooper, then proceeded to headbonk the oncoming tentacles, combo-ing upward enough to land a blow on the Blooper's forehead, dealing some damage to it. Mario swung his hammer rapidly, dodging and smacking the endless waves of the Blooper's tentacles, but he wasn't able to deal any real damage. Pacifica was off to the side tossing large stones at it, but nothing was happening. Then she remembered the Star Piece she found. She pulled it out.

Dipper focused his energy on the power the badge contained, trying to use the Power Smash attack. His staff slowly began to glow as it formed into a hammer similar to the design of the badge. It stopped glowing and began shining colors of red, green, blue, yellow, and white, as if it were charging power. With enough power stored inside the badge, he was ready, but before he could attack, Pacifica jumped upward holding a golden scepter. She smashed the scepter down on the Blooper's forehead, sending it in to a daze.

"All right Pacifica!" Goombella cheered.

With the Blooper distracted, Dipper jumped in to the air.

"**Power Smash!**" Dipper slammed the hammer downward straight between the Blooper's eyeballs, sending it soaring in to the air. It smashed in to the ceiling and exploded in to dust. Dipper fell back to the ground, panting, as his staff returned to normal.

"That was the power of the badge!" Mario said.

"That fight was eventful." Pacifica said. "I learned how to fight, and Dipper accessed the power inside his badge." Goombella smiled a Pacifica, who smiled back.

The room rumbled before two floating platforms emerged from the water, leading to the pipe on the other platform.

"Well, talk about convenient." Goombella said.

"Let's go." Dipper said, and the four jumped across the platforms to the other side. They gathered around the pipe and smiled at each other, before jumping inside.

Their adventure had just begun.

**-(End Of Prologue)-**

**Long chapter, I know, but we finished off the prologue! Pacifica used her Star Piece to make a scepter, so that is her weapon! Dipper will be the main badge user, so that is how I will incorporate badges in to this story! Next chapter will begin Chapter 1! But It'll take time to write, so until then…**

**Stay Tuned!**

**~087-B**


	4. Chapter 1 - Part 1: Arrival In Petalburg

**Hello my friends and fellow writers, 087-B here with the beginning of Chapter 1! In the last chapter, the gang found out where the first Crystal Star was and fought a giant Blooper. Finding a pipe after defeating it, the group jumped in… and that was where we left off! Now, let's find out where they went!**

**Now, on with the show!**

_Chapter 1: Castle And Dragon - Part 1 - Arrival in Petalburg_

The four heroes burst out of the stone pipe and landed flat on the ground in a large, beautiful flowery field. Getting up and wiping the dirt off of them, they felt very calm and relaxed while they were in such a lush, nature filled area, the direct opposite of Rogueport.

"Well, this is it!" Goombella began. "The Petal Meadows, where folks say a Crystal Star hides!" Mario pulled out the magical map.

"The map says there is a town located near here." Mario said.

"Then that's just where we'll go!" Pacifica said. "Maybe they have information on the location of the Crystal Star!"

"How many Crystal Stars are there anyway?" Dipper asked.

"The legend says that seven Crystal Stars exist." Goombella answered. "The only known one is the Diamond Star, which is the one that appeared on the map. The names or locations of the other six Crystal Stars are unknown."

The group proceeded down a small grassy slope and walked to the center of the field where small stone structures were set up, like a Mushroom Kingdom version of Stonehenge. They were about to press on before hearing a loud roaring overhead. Looking up, the group saw a large red dragon with a hook like tail. It flew over the group before returning to a castle on a far off hill, flying into the top tower.

"Guys! Did you see that?!" Goombella exclaimed.

"Was that a dragon?!" Dipper exclaimed.

"We've only been here for five minutes and already there's mystery and intrigue!" Goombella said. "Come on, let's get moving!"

The group continued forward a little before spotting a golden block with a '?' on it hovering in the air. While Dipper and Pacifica where mystified by it at first, Mario walked under it and jump, smacking the box. The '?' disappeared and a red mushroom with eyes flew out of the top. Mario walked over and picked it up.

"Oh, sweet! A red Mushroom!" Goombella said. "That'll be useful later on!"

"Uh…" Dipper and Pacifica were confused.

"Oh, right. You don't hail from this world." Mario remembered. "Here in the Mushroom Kingdom, blocks like these appear almost everywhere, and hitting them from the underside sometimes causes something to fly out from the top of it!" Mario held up the mushroom. "In this case, a Mushroom! A good recovery item that should replenish your strength during a battle!" The two Oregon children seemed to understand the concept of Mushrooms and ? Blocks.

Continuing forward, the group came across a red ? Block. Mario was about to jump at it, but instead Dipper jumped and hit its underside and a badge popped out from the top. It looked like a red-orange octagon with a big yellow swirl in the middle. Dipper went and picked it up. A note was attached, and he read it aloud.

"Close Call Badge. Requires 1 BP to wear. When the bearer of the badge has taken a sufficient amount of damage in battle to enter the 'Danger' status, enemies will miss ½ of the time they attack." Dipper thought about how useful this badge could be. He tossed it to Mario, who pinned it to his overalls.

"Those red blocks are called Badge Blocks." Goombella said. "Badge Blocks are much more rare than the normal ? Blocks, so keep an eye out for them."

"Badges seem to help out in battle." Dipper pointed out. "I used Power Smash to deal massive damage to the Blooper, and Mario might be more evasive with the Close Call badge."

"I guess if we keep badges organized, we can get a lot of benefit from them." Mario said. "I'm the one who usually jumps, so jumping related badges should work just right for me."

"I wonder what badges would work for me." Pacifica wondered. "Let's get a move on. I feel like some sort of creature might pop out soon."

"Yeah, let's." Dipper walked on ahead, followed by the rest of the group. They battled through a few Goombas, Paragoombas, and Spiky Goombas, but it was a relatively easy battle for our heroes. They came to a small clearing with a river flowing between the land, preventing further movement.

"How do we get past here?" Pacifica asked. "I mean, this can't be that hard, right?"

"Look, in the distance!" Mario pointed to a hill far out in the distance that had a blue box with a '!' on it resting on the ground. "That might be the switch for the bridge!"

"How do we get over there, though?" Dipper looked around, not seeming to turn up any answers, but after pushing a few dark green bushes aside, he found a pipe that connected to a pipe on the far hill. "Never mind, I think I found our solution!" The rest of the group gathered around the pipe.

"It will be easy to get to the switch." Mario said. "I'll go." He jumped in the pipe and emerged through the pipe on the far hill. He walked over to the switch and jumped on it, causing a bridge to appear over the river in the style of a flipbook. Mario gave the thumbs up to the others, who did so in return. Then he jumped back through the pipe, and the group continued on.

Upon crossing the bridge, the group found a wooden arch fence with a sign in the top-center area. The four of them walked up to it.

"Welcome to the small town of Petalburg. Population: 71." Dipper read the sign aloud. Looking through the gate, the gang saw a wondrously beautiful little town, filled with anthropomorphic turtles with green shells and boats and no sunglasses or spiked collars, called Koopas, as well as the mushroom clothed people, who the gang know as Toads. The buildings were small and yellow with orange bricked roofs, and little rivers ran throughout the town with small bridges connecting to other pieces of land that were divided by the flowing water. Walking into the town, a Koopa immediately greeted the group.

"Hello there!" The Koopa greeted. "Welcome to the town of Petalburg! We don't really have many tourists around here since the Hooktail incident, so we're kind of remote, to tell you the truth."

"Yeah yeah, we get it, Green Boots." Goombella said. Pacifica chuckled. "So what's this about a Hooktail incident?" The Koopa seemed shocked.

"You don't know about Hooktail?" The gang shook their heads. "Hooktail is a big red dragon with a hook shaped tail. It constantly goes around feasting on innocent people for its own enjoyment." The Koopa shuddered. "You four are lucky that you made it here without being eaten."

"We saw Hooktail earlier." Pacifica said. "At least, I think we did. We saw a giant red dragon fly into a castle in the distance back near the pipe that lead to Petal Meadows."

"Wow, you four are some of the only people who have lived after seeing Hooktail." The Koopa seemed impressed.

"Anyway, do you know anything about these gems called the Crystal Stars?" Goombella asked.

"Crystal Stars?" The Koopa thought for a moment. "Nope, can't say I have." The others seemed disappointed. "But you can ask the mayor. He's old… really old. Old enough to know more than us Koopas normally know."

"Where can we find him?" Mario asked.

"He lives in a small pink house up ahead." The Koopa answered. "You can't miss it."

"A pink house? Sounds totally hideous…" Goombella shuddered at the thought. "But thanks, you've been a big help!"

After the conversation, the gang saw the inn was right next to the entrance and decided to rent a room. They rested up in the inn for a bit, and when they felt they had regained enough strength, they set out once more.

:::::

Robbie burst through the dead trees panting heavily, his clothes torn up and his face bruised. He was so lost and confused, completely unknowing of where to go. Just hours earlier, he woke up at the top of an old abandoned steeple. Freaked out, he saw a town in the distance that was overlooked by the steeple. He escaped and ran toward it, although he didn't know if he would get far.

He jumped over a fallen log, but tripped over an unearthed tree root and fell to the ground. He felt like something was chasing him, even though nothing was behind him. Robbie quickly got up and bolted forward once more. Monsters like spike-headed rocks and ball shaped ghosts were attacking him when they could, but he saw the town coming up on the horizon. He sighed in relief but continued to run forward. He was nearing the town when something tripped him, even though no obstacles were in the way. With his face full of sand, gravel, and dirt, Robby heard a strange voice talk to him.

"Where do ya think you're going, Slick?"

:::::

Mario opened the door to the pink house and the group entered it, closing the door behind them. Inside was an elder Koopa with big, bushy light-gray eyebrows that covered his eyes, a long white beard, and he held a cane to support himself. Although it didn't seem like he could see well, he could obviously tell that people had just entered his home.

"Wait a second, are you robbers?!" The elder Koopa spoke. "Please, I don't have anything! Well, maybe I have little money, but please don't take the pictures of me and the misses!" He was trembling with fright.

"Um, Mr. Mayor, we aren't robbers." Dipper said. "We just have a few questions for you." The mayor calmed down a bit.

"Oh, so you aren't robbers?" The group shook their heads. "That's good. My name's Mayor Kroop, and I'm obviously the mayor of Petalburg." His smile returned. "So, you have a few questions for me?"

"Yes sir, Mayor Kroop." Goombella said. "We wanted to know if you know anything about gems called the Crystal Stars?"

"Crystal Stars, eh?" Kroop thought for a moment. "Yeah, that sounds a bit like the treasure Hooktail gobbled up."

"So you know about the Crystal Stars?" Pacifica asked.

"Yes indeed." Kroop answered. "The only way to get it is to beat Hooktail, and the only way to get into Hooktail's Castle is to find two Stone Keys."

"Stone Keys?" Dipper was confused. "Where do we find those?"

"The two Stone Keys that you'll need are hidden away in the deep caverns of the Shhwonk Fortress." Kroop answered. "The Shhwonk Fortress can be found East of Petalburg. It's heavily guarded, however. Trials exist along the way. Brutal battles, fearsome fights, daunting duals!"

"Thanks for the information, Mayor Kroop." Dipper said. As much as he kept his cool, he felt very awkward talking to an anthropomorphic elderly turtle, considering the circumstances.

"So I'm guessing that you want these Stone Keys because you're off to slay Hooktail?" Kroop asked eagerly.

"Um, I guess you could say that." Goombella said.

"Oh joyous day! Tell me, heroes, what are your names?" Kroop looked at Mario.

"The name is Mario!" Mario said happily, followed by a "Wa-Hoo!"

"Eh? Murphy is the name?" Kroop was very wise, but he had terrible hearing.

"Um, no. It's "Mario", not Murphy." Mario tried to correct Mayor Kroop.

"I agree, Murphy! You do have nice eyebrows!" Kroop turned to Dipper. "Now what's your name, sonny?"

"Um… My name's Dipper." Dipper said, even though he knew Mayor Kroop would probably mess it up.

"That's a nice name, Dixon!" Kroop said. Dipper sighed, but chuckled.

"Yeah, it's Dixon." Dipper said.

"Now, valiant heroes, tell the gatekeeper you have my permission to leave town!" Kroop said. "He'll open the gate and let you be on your way to Shhwonk Fortress!"

"Thank you, Mayor Kroop!" Pacifica said. The four of them left the house, seeing the gatekeeper not too far away from where they stood. They had made some significant progress on their adventure, even though many questions still remained unanswered. As they approached the gatekeeper, they felt like they were ready to take on the Shhwonk Fortress, even though they didn't know how difficult the actual dungeon would be. Mario explained to the gatekeeper about what they needed to do, and as the gatekeeper opened the gate, the group heard a voice behind them.

"Um, h-hello?" The group tuned to see a Koopa with a blue hoodie, some navy blue shorts, a single droopy eyelid, a bandage on his nose, and some worn-out white boots. "Um, y-yeah… My n-name's Koops, and… I heard you were g-going to Hooktail Castle, so… I was h-hoping to ask…" Koops was silent for a bit, very shy and hesitant about speaking to the group. "Oh, just forget it, okay?! Forget about me! I'm not important!" Koops ran off toward a home and slammed the door shut once he was inside.

"OOOOOO-K… talk about some serious issues." Goombella said. Pacifica watched as Koops slammed the door shut.

"I think I'll stay behind on this one." Pacifica said. "You guys go get those keys or whatever."

"Why aren't you coming?" Dipper asked.

"I just… need to speak with someone, okay?" Pacifica answered. The others seemed fine with it, and Mario, Dipper, and Goombella walked off into the fields toward the mysterious fortress. Meanwhile, Pacifica walked over to Koops' house and knocked on the door. There was no response. She grabbed the handle slowly opened the door.

"Hello?" She greeted. Koops was sitting in a fetal position on a stool.

"W-What do you want?" He asked nervously. Pacifica approached him.

"I can see you're under quite a bit of stress." Pacifica said. "What's wrong?"

"…W-Why are you helping me?" Koops asked, now looking at Pacifica.

"I can relate to what you might be going through." Pacifica said. "I'm also under a lot of stress."

"Why?" Koops asked.

"…I'm really far away from my hometown." Pacifica answered, looking at the ground solemnly. "I've changed a lot since I left."

"Where did you live before?" Koops asked.

"In a town called Gravity Falls." Pacifica answered. "It's really far away… Really far…"

"You must really miss your family." Koops said. "I miss mine too. My dad went off to fight Hooktail, but he never returned." Koops looked down solemnly. "I've been called a weakling for a long time, and I've never been able to stand up for myself because of the stress of losing my father."

"I'm sorry." Pacifica said, trying to console him. "I guess we both have something in common, I guess. Our families are gone, and all I have left are my friends to support me…" Pacifica thought for a moment on how she had changed in the new world… how she had made a friend in Goombella, and Mario, and Dipper…

"I wanted to ask you guys if I could join your journey to Hooktail Castle." Koops said. "But I was too nervous. I could never really pull my weight even if you decided to take me along."

"Don't say stuff like that!" Pacifica said. "Let's just wait for my friends to come back, then you can ask them." She stared out the window. "Hopefully they come back…"

"Hopefully…"

**-(End Of Chapter)-**

**Took a while to write, and I got really bored during the time it took to write Kroop's dialogue, but the next chapter will focus on Mario, Dipper, and Goombella in Shhwonk Fortress, so that will be enjoyable to write. I was playing some Paper Mario TTYD as I wrote this chapter, so I did have some fun during Kroop's seemingly endless dialogue.**

**Stay Tuned!**

**~087-B**


	5. Chapter 1 - Part 2: Shhwonk Fortress

**Another day, another chapter. In the last chapter, the Castle And Dragon arc had begun, and the gang made it to Petalburg! Now with knowledge of how to enter Hooktail Castle and find the Crystal Star, Mario, Dipper, and Goombella went off to the strange Shhwonk Fortress, but Pacifica stayed behind to speak with the shy and seriously stressed out Koopa, Koops. Now, let's check on the rest of the gang, shall we?**

**Now, on with the show!**

_Chapter 1: Castle And Dragon - Part 2 - The Stone Keys Of Shhwonk Fortress_

Dipper dodged the rock monster that charged at him, called a Bald Cleft, although a second one caught him off guard, tripping him. Mario had become a lot more swift thanks to the Close Call badge, and dodged another attack, using his hammer to land a weak blow on one of the Bald Clefts.

"Mario! These attacks aren't working!" Dipper said, dodging another attack.

"Dipper! Try the Power Smash!" Goombella called, head bonking a Bald Cleft, not causing any damage.

"I can't!" Dipper yelled. "I don't have enough strength to do it!"

"I guess that's what it means by FP!" Goombella said, dodging more attacks. "Your body must have a limited amount of Flower Power stored inside! You must have used it all up!"

"Well, isn't that just dandy?" Dipper asked sarcastically.

"What about this?" Mario pulled out a red block with the word 'POW!' on it.

"Of course!" Goombella remembered. "POW Blocks pierce defenses! Use it, Mario!" Mario tossed the POW Block above his head and jumped upward, hitting its underside. It exploded, causing the Bald Clefts to implode. They vanished in a puff of smoke, and the exits inside the building they were had opened up once more.

"Well," Dipper wiped the sweat from his forehead, panting. "That battle was a long one."

"Well, we pulled through, didn't we?" Goombella asked. "We're one step closer to Shhwonk Fortress!"

"You're right, Goombella." Mario said. "We have no time to lose. We have to get those Stone Keys!"

"Right!" Dipper and Goombella said in unison.

The three exited the building through the new exit and continued onward, fighting Koopa Troopas, Paragoombas, and the occasional Spiky Goomba, before finding themselves in yet another building. The first building was made of dull, blue-gray bricks, but this one was made of slightly less dull red-gray bricks. Upon entering, they saw another exit that was barred up, just like the one from the previous building. Inside were two pedestals like the previous building, but on top were strange balls with spikes covering every inch of them, and they had broken faces like a badly carved out jack-o-lantern. When all of them entered the building, however, the entrance they had used to get inside was blocked off by bars that extending out from the walls. The strange balls jumped off of the pedestals, and Goombella pulled out her tattle logbook.

"Guys, watch out! Those things are Bristles!" Goombella said. The Bristles stuck their spikes out toward Mario and Dipper, who swiftly dodged. "Max HP is 2, Attack is 2, and Defense is 2! These things will eject their spikes at you, so getting close to hammer or jump will be too dangerous!"

"No hammering or jumping…" Dipper thought for a moment. "…we better use an item." Dipper pulled out another POW Block and tossed it in the air. Then he jumped up and hit the underside of the POW Block and it exploded. Then the Bristles imploded on themselves and burst into puffs of smoke, and the entrance and exit became unblocked, the bars going back inside the walls.

"That was a quick battle." Dipper said. "We're breezing through this, I had expected more of a challenge." He loosened the grip on his staff, already relaxed from battling.

"That's a good thing though, right?" Mario asked. "We can get the Stone Keys a lot quicker if we just breeze by the battles." He put his hammer away and adjusted his Close Call badge so it wouldn't fall off of his overalls.

"Yeah, Mario's right." Goombella said. "If the battles are this easy, Shhwonk Fortress would be a quick thing to get done."

"But we don't know how difficult it will be." Dipper pointed out. "We still can't let our guard down." The group exited the second building. "I've taken time to read about Shhwonk Fortress." Dipper pulled out a book and opened it. "According to this book, Shhwonk Fortress has three guard stations, two of which we've conquered." Dipper flipped through a few more pages. "The third is the hardest, and many travelers have tried to get past it, but only a select few have succeeded."

"So we have a major difficulty spike here." Mario said.

"Yeah, we do. This could be very difficult if we don't know what we're doing." Dipper put the book away and the group continued on.

After fighting a few Koopa Troopas, Paragoombas, and a Spiky Goomba, the group found another building, this one even bigger than the last two. It was made of dull yellow-bricks and did not have an exit on the far wall, but instead a statue of a pedestal with a gray block, surrounded in spikes, resting on top of it. A little bit of light was let in from a few holes in the ceiling above, and some tiles on the floor were missing, showing patches of dirt with weeds growing on them. The three of them approached it.

"What is it?" Dipper asked.

"Some sort of statue." Mario said. Goombella flipped through pages in one of her many research books.

"My books don't say anything about a statue guardian of Shhwonk Fortress." Goombella said. "Probably because nobody made it out to write about it or document it."

"Well, where I come from, I seem to have a thing with strange objects." Dipper said. "Honestly, it doesn't surprise me that we're stuck without knowing what this thing even is." Dipper read an engraving on the statue. "For the most handsome prince, we guard your beloved… what does that even mean?"

"Maybe this thing is a monument of sorts?" Goombella suggested. "Probably for some sort of royalty, considering it says 'prince' on the engraving."

"If this statue is supposed to represent the look of the so called 'handsome prince', then he wasn't very handsome." Dipper said. A face then appeared on the spiky block, an angry one at that, and stared at Dipper.

"How **_dare_** you insult the Shhwonk Prince!" The statue roared.

"Ah!" Dipper got a frightened look on his face and stumbled backwards, falling over. He scotched away from the statue before standing up again.

"Foolish travelers, who art thou?!" The statue roared.

"We're travelers who seek the Stone Keys of Shhwonk Fortress!" Goombella said.

"Hmm… You three seem powerful." The statue said. "I do have a challenge, but you may not make it out alive. Are you willing to take me on?!" The three group members thought for a moment, then nodded yes without any hesitation whatsoever. "Very well. Let the challenge begin!" Then, in the blink of an eye, the room they were in turned into a room filled with colorful blue, white, red, and yellow lights, and the statue now sported a red bow tie and had a microphone in front of it. The three heroes stood in a red and gold booth with a screen above them with the number '1' on it, and the front part of the both had a '?' on it. The three heroes were very confused.

"Welcome to the 65th annual Super Fun Quirk Quiz!" The statue said. "Today, our contestants will have to answer five, that's right, five, questions correctly if they wish to proceed! But if they answer three wrong, they will suffer a horrible fate! Muhahaha!" A paper card appeared in front of the statue. "This first question is for the boy in the blue vest!" Dipper, although very confused, stepped forward.

"Question Number 1! What is hidden in this place? Is it A) The Stone Keys, B) The Crystal Star, C) Princess Peach, or D) The Pickle Stone?" Dipper automatically knew the answer. This question was laughably easy.

"The answer is A, The Stone Keys!" Dipper said proudly. A little ring played in the background and the '?' on the front of the booth changed to a circle, indicating the answer to the question was correct.

"That is correct!…wait, correct?!" The statue was shocked. "Grrrr, the question was too easy! But it will only get harder from here! This next question is for the little goomba girl!" Goombella stepped forward and Dipper stepped back. Another card appeared in front of the statue. The circle on the booth reverted to a '?', and the '1' on the screen turned to a '2'.

"Question Number 2! What do one Mr. Softener and one cost at the shop in Petalburg? Is it A) 10 Coins, B) 12 Coins, C) 16 Coins, or D) 20 Coins?"

Goombella didn't know the answer. She hadn't even gone into the shop in Petalburg… well, not yet at least. She thought long and hard, and finally, she decided to take a wild guess.

"Is it… C? 16 Coins?" Goombella winced, hoping her answer was correct. A little ding was heard, indicating the question was correct.

"Another correct answer?!" The statue was, once again, shocked. "Hmph! Forget it, that one was too easy as well! The next question will be very hard! Red cap, you're up!" Mario stepped forward and Goombella stepped back. Another card appeared in front of the statue as the '2' on the screen became a '3'.

"Question Number 3! What is the name of the mayor of Petalburg? Is it A) Kooskoos, B) Burtle, C) Moopa, or D) Kroop?"

Mario had already remembered the name of the mayor, so this question was far too easy.

"The answer is D, Kroop!" Mario said. Once again, a little ding noise played in the background, signifying the answer was correct.

"Correct again?! How do you know all this?!" The statue still seemed surprise that the travelers had a vast knowledge of the answers to the questions. "No matter! The next question will be very difficult! Blue vest, you're up again!" Mario stepped back and Dipper stepped forward once again. Another card appeared in front of the statue, and the screen changed from a '3' to a '4'.

"Question Number 4! Where is the Crystal Star? Is it A) Rogueport, B) Hooktail Castle, C) Mushville, or D) Petalburg?"

Dipper, seeing as this quiz was far easier than he thought, and that this challenge… wasn't much of a challenge, said in a proud voice:

"The answer is B! The Crystal Star is located in Hooktail Castle!" He had a smile of determination on his face. A dinging noise was heard, and the question was correct.

"Wait… four questions correct?! How is that even possible?!" The statue was worried these travelers would succeed in winning the quiz. "I'll make sure this final question is incredibly, ridiculously hard! Goomba girl, you're up again!" Dipper stepped back and Goombella took a step forward.

"Question Number 5! How can one get from Petal Meadows to Rogueport? Is it A) Boat Across the Sea, B) Only by Air, C) Go Through a Pipe, or D) Race in a Kart?"

"Seriously?! This question is, like, a total joke!" Goombella scoffed. "The answer is totally C! We came through a pipe to Petal Meadows an hour ago!" She gave a smug smile at the statue.

"No… no!… NO!" The statue was enraged. "All five questions correct?! You three must be geniuses!" The room returned to normal, and the bow tie on the statue vanished. "Fine! If you want in to Shhwonk Fortress, here you go!" The statue spun around for a second before sliding backwards, a pipe emerging from the ground it previously stood on. "HMPH!" The statue closed its eyes and its face vanished, leaving the room completely silent.

"Well… I don't see how anyone failed that challenge." Dipper said.

"I'm guessing not everyone had the knowledge of the Crystal Stars." Goombella suggested. "Or they came straight from Petalburg and didn't know how to get to Petal Meadows from anywhere else."

"That makes some sense." Mario agreed with Goombella's theory. "Now come on. The pipe to Shhwonk Fortress is right here!" The three approached the pipe, and Mario let out a signature "Let's-a-go!" before jumping into the pipe, followed by Goombella, then finally Dipper.

:::::

The three emerged from the pipe in a dark, blue-black bricked room with water filling a part of the floor, just up to their ankles (or in Goombella's case, her neck tie.). Before anyone did anything, Mario noticed a Badge Block nearby. He walked over to it and hit it from underneath, revealing a badge that looked like a single green boot. Mario picked it up and read the note attached.

"Multibounce. Requires 1 BP to wear. When worn, the bearer can perform Multibounce to attack all enemies, jumping from one enemy to the next instantaneously. 2 FP is required to use this attack." Mario pinned the badge on his overalls, just above his Close Call badge. "A jumping badge works perfectly for me!"

"A split path…" Dipper looked down the left hall, then the right. "We should split up. I'll go down the left." He turned to Mario and Goombella. "You two go down the right."

"Okay, but I need to warn you about something, Dipper." Goombella said. "The monsters in this place are called Fuzzies, and they have the ability to drain your Hit Points, or HP, and use it to replenish theirs. Just be on guard, okay?"

"Alright." Dipper said, then he proceeded to walk down the left hallway, with Mario and Goombella going down the right hallway.

:::::

Dipper, now at the other end of the hall, entered a rather sizeable room with a single platform in the middle and no other entrances or exits other than the one he used to get inside. A dim light shined on the middle of the platform, and inside the light was a strange looking stone that looked like a moon.

"Aha!" Dipper exclaimed. "That must be one of the Stone Keys!" He walked up to the platform and stepped on to it, out of the water. He bent over to pick it up, and when he did, four little black fuzz balls with eyes and a mouth emerged from four small holes in the ceiling.

"Whoa!" Dipper said surprised, falling backward. He expected these things to be the Fuzzies Goombella had brought up only minutes earlier. He quickly got back to his feet and readied his staff. One of the four Fuzzies bounced toward him and jumped on to him. It stuck to his arm and began to make a sucking noise. It detached itself moments later and became a bit more faster and energetic. Dipper felt a tiny bit weaker. He had just lost a Hit Point. He knew he would have to be ready for these attacks, or else he'd lose the battle in no time.

He reached in to his pocket and pulled out a Fire Flower, then proceeded to shoot it at the Fuzzies. It severely damaged all of them, causing three of them to spin around before bursting into puffs of smoke. The one Fuzzy that remained, however, was the one that had sucked a Hit Point out of Dipper at the beginning of the fight. Dipper rushed towards the Fuzzy, and the Fuzzy did the same towards Dipper. Just before hitting the Fuzzy, however, Dipper turned and ran left. The Fuzzy stopped moving and looked around confused, before Dipper came down from above and struck the Fuzzy in the head with his staff, making it spin around before bursting into a puff of smoke.

"Well, that takes care of that." Dipper noticed the moon-shaped stone on the ground near his feet. He bent over and grabbed it, then left the room and went back toward the main room.

:::::

Goombella used an extra POW Block to deal some extra damage to the group of four Fuzzies she and Mario were fighting, while Mario finished them off with a Multibounce, jumping from one Fuzzy to the next without fail. They had grabbed a red circle stone that had yellow spikes surrounding it, resembling the sun. They quickly proceeded back to the main room to meet up with Dipper.

They entered the main room at the same time as Dipper, but stopped noticing something in the middle of the room.

"Whoa!" Goombella said amazed. "Isn't that a Gold Fuzzy?! Those are like, super rare!"

"Meowrk!" The Gold Fuzzy shouted, bouncing around the center of the room angrily. "So, you fools think you can just come into our home, beat up my friends, and steal the treasure?"

"What the…?" Dipper seemed confused. "I'm guessing you found this place abandoned and you wanted this to be your home? Don't worry, we'll leave if you want us to."

"What?" The Gold Fuzzy seemed very confused. "No no, you have it all wrong!" Now the three heroes were confused. "You see, you may have thought you conquered all of the challenges and beaten all the guards, but I'm the real final challenge of Shhwonk Fortress!"

"So then…" Mario pulled out his hammer. "You're looking for a fight?"

"Heh heh heh, you bet your bucket I am!" The Gold Fuzzy said with a smirk.

"That's not even a saying…" Dipper said under his breath. He quickly pulled out his wooden staff and prepared himself for the battle.

"Let the battle commence!" The Gold Fuzzy took a step towards Mario and Goombella, but quickly spun around and raced toward Dipper, jumping up and bonking him on the head, knocking him over in surprise. Dipper quickly got back to his feet and activated his Power Smash badge, transforming his staff into the metal hammer it was during the Blooper battle back in the Rogueport Sewers.

"Power Smash!" Dipper jumped up and brought the metal hammer down on the Gold Fuzzy, dealing massive damage and sending it bouncing back to the middle of the room. His staff quickly returned to normal after the end of the attack, but Dipper was now panting heavily, completely out of strength after only one turn in the battle.

"Mee-OOF!" The Gold Fuzzy said. "Heh, you guys are tougher then you look… but I've got a few tricks up my sleeve!" He looked up at the darkness above, the ceiling shrouded by it. "Come on out, guys!" Then, a bunch of regular Fuzzies fell from the darkness above, at least 50 or more, and surrounded the Gold Fuzzy. While the gang was surprised, and a little frightened, they quickly regained their senses and prepared their next attacks.

Mario pulled out a blue mask, a Fright Mask, and put it on, and the Fuzzy Horde quickly ran off and jumped through cracks in the wall to hide. The Gold Fuzzy trembled, seeing as it was no longer defended by anything. Dipper activated another Power Smash attack, although he was a bit more sluggish than normal. He ran over to the Gold Fuzzy and lifted the hammer up.

"Power Smash!" He brought the hammer down on the Gold Fuzzy, making it dazed and confused and creating a bump on its forehead. It regained its senses and looked at the group.

"You're just a bunch of jerks!" The Gold Fuzzy said in a cowardly tone. "Take the treasure, I don't care! Just leave!" The Gold Fuzzy bounced off toward the wall and jumped in the cracks, concealing itself.

"Well, we got the two Stone Keys!" Goombella said. "Let's return to Petalburg!"

:::::

It was mid-evening when the gang reached Petalburg once again, and upon arrival, they saw the nervous Koopa, Koops, standing with Pacifica near the gate. The three walked up to the two others.

"Finally! You guys are back!" Pacifica said. "You've been gone for at least three hours!"

"Well, we got the keys." Mario said, holding up the Sun Stone. Dipper proudly held up the Moon Stone. Pacifica smiled.

"Great job, guys!" She turned to Koops. "Now, I believe you have a question for these guys?" Dipper, Mario, and Goombella were confused by Koops' presence.

"Um, yeah…" Koops stepped forward. "Um, well, you see…" The others waited for Koops' question. "Oh please take me with you to fight Hooktail! PLEASE!" The group members were surprised at Koops' outburst.

"Koops, calm down!" Pacifica said.

"R-Right…" Koops took a deep breath. "You see… my dad went off to fight Hooktail a year ago, but… he never returned. Since that point, I've wanted to get stronger so I could go out and fight Hooktail and avenge my father, and…" He took another deep breath. "…when you four rolled into town saying you were off to Hooktail Castle, I thought I finally had the chance to prove my worth, but I couldn't bring myself to ask you guys…"

"…I can understand what you're trying to ask." Dipper said with a small smile. He placed a hand on Koops' shoulder. "You're welcome to come along on our quest."

"R-Really?!" Koops jumped up and down in joy. "Oh, thank you! Thank you so much!"

"Now that this is all good and done," Pacifica began. "We should go rest up at the inn, then set out for Hooktail Castle in the morning. Sound good?" The others nodded their heads. As they made their way back to the inn, Dipper's stomach growled.

"Oh man, I haven't eaten anything at all since me and Pacifica arrived in Rogueport two days ago." Dipper said. "I'm starving!"

"Oh! You're in luck!" Koops said. "The inn has a dinner night every Friday! We can get something to eat there!"

:::::

The group sat at a large, round table and picked up their menus, ready to order something to eat.

"They have Life Shrooms on this menu?!" Pacifica gasped. "Aren't those things like, totally expensive?"

"Yeah, but these are the Artificial Life Shrooms." Goombella answered. "They're filled with caffeine, so you'll stay up all night if you order one. The All Natural Life Shrooms are the ones sold in stores, usually filled with a ton of fresh and exotic herbs. They're the ones you want, but they don't serve them here."

"Well, in that case…" Pacifica looked over the dinner section of the menu. "… I'll have a Shroom Crepe!"

"Are you sure you can pay for it?" Goombella asked. "The Shroom Crepe is really fancy, but really expensive. It costs even more than the Life Shroom!"

"I can pay." Pacifica said. "Besides, it looks pretty good from the picture."

"Oh, believe me," Koops began. "It is. It's a wonderful, more exotic dish than some of the others here."

"Hmm…" Dipper scanned the menu. "I don't have a lot of coins on me, so I'll go with something simple…" He found a certain dish that intrigued him. "What's a Shroom Cake?"

"A really good dish for a dinner meal." Goombella answered. "It's one of the best dishes I've ever eaten."

"Well, I'll order that then!" Dipper decided on his meal, just as the waitress/inn keeper returned to their table.

"Have you decided on your orders yet?" She asked sweetly.

"I'll have the Shroom Cake." Dipper said.

"One Shroom Crepe for me, please!" Pacifica said.

"I'll have a Super Shroom, just to keep things simple." Mario said.

"Hmm… I'll take a Spicy Soup." Goombella said.

"And I guess I'll have the Koopasta." Koops said.

"Okay then!" The waitress/inn keeper took their menus. "I'll be back soon with your orders!"

:::::

Later in the night, after everyone had their meals, the group was asleep in their room in the inn except for Dipper and Mario. Dipper was staring out the window at Hooktail Castle in the distance. Mario walked over and stood beside him.

"How are you holding up?" Mario asked.

"Well… I'm still not used to this whole "alternate world" type of thing." Dipper answered. "It feels too weird."

"Well, I'm sure you'll get used to it." Mario reassured Dipper.

"Yeah, I guess you're right, Mario." Dipper concentrated on Hooktail Castle. "I wonder what challenges lie ahead in Hooktail Castle."

"Maybe we might find one of your friends there?" Mario looked at Hooktail Castle as well. "Who knows, but you better get some sleep. You will need all the energy you can get in the morning."

"Alright Mario." Dipper walked over to his bed and sat on it, and Mario did the same with his bed. "Night."

"Goodnight, Dipper." Mario said, before falling asleep. Dipper was about to lay down as well, but he noticed something poking out of Goombella's history book, which was on a table nearby. It was a slip of paper. Dipper grabbed it and pulled it out and unfolded it. He was shocked at what he saw.

The paper had a number at the bottom reading '36', obviously a page number. It seemed to have been torn out of the book, but mysteriously placed there again. A passage covered a small part of the page, and Dipper read it to himself s he wouldn't wake up the others.

"From another world, a hero arrives. He lands in a town that barely thrives. With one other companion by his side, his own power, he must abide." Dipper was shocked at this mysterious page that he had never found in the book, and he read Goombella's books many times. "To open the mysterious millennium door, one must have the map of lore, along with the Crystal Stars of light, destiny shall shine with all its might. To find the lost friend, to fight till the end, this hero shall stay alive, and will fight to survive." Dipper finished reading the eerie passage, but what freaked him out even more was the appearance of a doodle of a pine tree, a question mark, and a shooting star at the bottom of the page, as well as a doodle of a Star Piece, a mushroom, a pickaxe, a bandage, a necklace, a spotted egg, a striped hat, a heart, an anchor, an ice bag, a broken heart, a lollipop, a lizard, a fez, and an axe, and they were all formed a circle with the pine tree at the top.

Dipper was very confused by these strange symbols. What did they mean? Who was this other worldly hero? It couldn't be him… could it? He wasn't the only one from another world, though, but instead of thinking about it, Dipper folded up the page, put it in his pocket, and drifted off to sleep.

**-(End Of Chapter)-**

**This is probably the longest thing I've ever written on here. Yes, this long chapter was worth the wait I assume, so I hope you enjoyed it! Considering I'm writing this in Microsoft Word, this chapter went from page 34 to 46, and the word count jumped from 9,000 to over 14,000 just from this one chapter... so yeah. I still question wy I don't write chapters as long as this one for my other stories... Hmm...**

**Stay Tuned!**

**~087-B**


	6. Chapter 1 - Part 3: Bone Chilling Battle

**Hello friends, 087-B here once again! In the last chapter, Dipper, Mario, and Goombella recovered the Stone Keys inside of Shhwonk Fortress and safely returned to Petalburg! Now, after Dipper discovered a mysterious page that not only foretold of an other worldly hero, but had 17 mysterious symbols forming a circle at the bottom of the page… what does it mean? You won't find out for a while… a long while!**

**Now, on with the show!**

_Chapter 1: Castle And Dragon - Part 3 - A Bone Chilling Battle_

After a long and good night of rest, Dipper awoke on his bed, yawning and stretching at the same time. He at first thought the whole ordeal of the alternate world was a dream, but instead, he found himself still inside of the Petalburg inn. It was as real as the gnomes he and Mabel encountered so long ago… Thoughts of him and Mabel flooded Dipper's mind. He missed her so much, he didn't know where she was or what she was up to, and the only person he recognized as a familiar face around her was Pacifica, and the two were enemies at first… but Pacifica seemed to have a change of a heart, and one for the better, too.

Dipper rubbed his eyes and grabbed his staff, which was leaning against the windowsill. He yawned once more and left the room, then walked down the stairs. The rest of the group sat at the table they sat at last night for dinner, most of them looked as tired as he did. He looked out the window. The sun was just barely over the horizon, and the sky was a deep periwinkle blue with some pink/orange hue mixed inside, sort of like a detailed painting.

"Oh, Dipper." Pacifica began. "You're awake." She gestured for him to sit down. "Come on, the 'Saturday Breakfast Bash' is about to begin!" Dipper groggily walked over and sat in a seat between Mario and Koops.

"Saturday Breakfast Bash?" Dipper asked.

"It's pretty much just a normal breakfast morning they do every Saturday morning." Koops answered. "They change around the menus, so take a look at the new food items." Koops passed a menu to Dipper, who took it and opened it. The words were blurry, and he had to once again rub his eyes to clear his vision.

"Wow, I still can't believe most of these foods are from Zess T.'s personal cookbook!" Pacifica said in awe. "She's a really fabulous cook! Meanwhile, I'm a…"

"Meanwhile, I'm a…" Goombella muttered to herself.

"…total klutz in the kitchen!" Pacifica and Goombella surprised each other with what they had said in unison, before both burst out laughing.

"It's good to see the girls having some fun." Dipper said to Koops and Mario.

"You're right, Dipper." Koops said. "It's a really good thing."

"Pacifica has quickly grown accustom to this world." Mario said. "I wouldn't be surprised if she started dressing like a Toad."

"Okay, let's order!" Pacifica said. "They have a wide variety of drinks this time! I think my breakfast will be…" Pacifica scanned the menu thoroughly. "… a Mango Delight, with a Fresh Juice to drink!"

"Mango Delight is one of the sweetest fruit related foods out there!" Goombella said. "I maybe be a terrible cook, but I know my foods. I was a food critic for a term in high school, ya know."

"Wow! You probably got to try a lot of Zess T.'s meals then, didn't you?" Pacifica asked.

"Yep! There weren't as many as there are today, mind you, but she was spectacular back then!" Goombella answered. "Now, for my breakfast…" Goombella scanned the menu for a while.

"I'm still a little tired," Koops began. "So I guess I'll order a Zess Frappe so I can get some energy in me."

"I will have…" Dipper looked around the menu. "… an Omelette Meal with a Koopa Tea as my drink! It's very cheap, so I'm pretty sure I can afford it!"

"You seem to order a lot of cheap food Dipper." Mario pointed out. "If you want a bigger breakfast, I have the money to pay for it."

"Thanks Mario, but I'd rather pay myself." Dipper said. "You get a big breakfast if you want one."

"Okay then." Mario scanned his menu over.

"Good morning! Are you ready to place your orders?" A new waitress toad appeared at their table with a notepad and pen.

"I'll take an Omelette Meal with a Koopa Tea." Dipper said.

"I'll have a Mango Delight with a Fresh Juice!" Pacifica said.

"I'd like a Mousse Cake with a Zess Tea, please." Goombella said.

"I'll have a Zess Frappe." Koops said.

"And I'll have a Healthy Salad with a Tasty Tonic!" Mario said.

"Alrighty then! I'll be back with your orders soon!" The waitress toad finished writing the orders down and took the menus, then walked away.

"So guys, I think we need a plan for Hooktail Castle." Dipper said.

"I agree." Pacifica said. "We can't just rush in there… can we?"

"That does sound a bit too dangerous…" Koops said. "What should be our approach?"

"Well, we could probably sneak in." Goombella said. "The entrance might be guarded, so a secret entrance would help. But I don't think one exists…"

"What if it isn't guarded?" Mario suggested. "We have not seen anyone or anything go in or out of the castle except for Hooktail, the first time we arrived here, but since then, nothing."

"Mario, you might be on to something." Pacifica said. "We should head off first thing after breakfast. Then, we see what we can do about the castle."

"I like that idea, Pacifica." Dipper said.

"Same!" Goombella agreed with Dipper. "Both Mario's and your ideas are great!"

"So we have a plan then!" Koops said.

"Then it's settled!" Dipper said. "We know what to do about the castle, we're able to get in, and we know where the Crystal Star is! We've made some great progress!"

"Indeed we have." Mario said.

"I'm back!" The waitress set all the plates, trays, dishes, and cups on the table. "Breakfast is served!"

:::::

The gang had finished their breakfast and were completely energized. The five of them had made their way back to the entrance to Petal Meadows near the pipe to the sewers, and saw two big stones, one with a moon indent and one with a sun indent, and a stone shaped like a pipe in the middle.

"Well, here goes nothing." Dipper placed the Moon Stone inside the moon shaped indent, and Mario placed the Sun Stone in the sun shaped indent. The ground around them rumbled, before the pipe shaped rocking burst into pieces, revealing a green warp pipe underneath. At the same time, another pipe appeared on the hill near Hooktail Castle, growing out of the ground similar to a few other warp pipes they had encountered in their quest.

"Here we go!" Dipper exclaimed, jumping into the pipe, followed by Mario, Pacifica, Goombella, then finally Koops. All five of them emerged out of the pipe on the far hill, and they entered Hooktail Castle.

They had arrived in a small gateway type area with a brick catwalk overhead, and another doorway on the other side. Upon walking through it, the five heroes found a bridge, completely broken with a large gap going jaggedly through the middle. A big purple door rested on the other side, obviously the entrance to the actual castle.

"Shoot! How do we get across?" Pacifica asked.

"Hmm…" Mario looked around before walking back into the gateway.

"Mario? Where are you going?" Goombella followed him with the others trailing close behind. They found Mario standing in front of a yellow spring type of object.

"Um, what _is _that?" Dipper asked, confused.

"It's a trampoline." Mario answered. "If we jump on it like so…" Mario jumped on it and bounced off of it, going high enough to land on the brick catwalk above. "Come on up!" Goombella jumped first, followed by Koops. Pacifica didn't even hesitate. She jumped on and went flying up, saying "Woo-hoo!" as well. Dipper was at first surprised by Pacifica's sudden change of personality, but realized this world was a good influence on her. He then jumped on and went shooting upwards, landing on the brick catwalk along with the rest of the group.

"That was a rush!" Pacifica said happily. "Come on, we should be close to getting in!" The group proceeded forward, now on a balcony above the bridge. The balcony had an airplane symbol on it.

"Ah, check it out!" Mario said. "We can use this to fly across!"

"Um… how do we do that?" Koops asked.

"Like so!" Dipper said. He stood on the platform, and to Koops' surprise, he became a paper airplane. He flew across to the other side, landing in front of the door and reverting to normal.

"Now it's our turn!" Pacifica said. She and Goombella did the same as Dipper, changing form, flying over, and reverting to normal.

"I don't mean to be a killjoy, but I can't change like that." Koops said. Mario thought for a moment.

"I have an idea!" He grabbed Koops' wrist and changed into an airplane, and Koops did so as well to his surprise. They flew over to the other side of the bridge and returned to normal.

"That felt… weird…" Koops said. "How are you all able to do that?"

"Long story." Mario answered. Dipper approached the door and grabbed the handles. Then with all of the strength he could muster, he pulled hard on the handles and opened the doorway.

:::::

Once inside, the gang marveled at how civilized the castle appeared to be, but after a moment, they realized this castle was almost abandoned. They took a few steps forward before seeing Koopas and Paratroopas guarding the halls.

"Aw crap." Dipper said. "Looks like this castle isn't so dead after all." He readied his staff, Mario readied his hammer, and Pacifica readied her scepter. The battles were fierce, but ended in a victory for the five heroes.

"Hold on guys, I'm feeling a bit weak." Pacifica said, panting heavily after the battle. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a Mushroom, then ate it and restored some of her HP.

"Alright, we ready to move on?" Dipper asked.

"Just about… wait a second." Mario walked over to a Badge Block he saw. "This is the third Badge Block we've found!" He jumped up and hit its underside, and a badge that looked like a blue boot popped out. Mario picked it up and read the attached note.

"Power Bounce. Requires 3 BP to wear. When worn, the bearer can perform Power Bounce, which allows the bearer to jump on a single enemy multiple times until they mess up. 3 FP is required to use this attack." Mario tried to pin it on his overalls, but it wouldn't go in.

"Huh, why won't it go on?" Mario asked.

"I have a theory." Dipper said. Everyone turned to face him. "I think you don't have anymore available badge points."

"How do we get more?" Pacifica asked.

"Well, you know how after a certain amount of battles, we suddenly get stronger in a way? Like when our HP rises or our FP rises?" Dipper asked. Pacifica nodded. "Well, we just need to upgrade BP at that time. I've gotten three of those already, and I upgraded my HP once and my BP twice."

"That… kind of makes sense." Pacifica said. "I guess you could call it… a 'Level Up', maybe?"

"That sounds cool." Dipper said. "I like that."

"They don't happen often, I guess." Mario said. "I guess you can have it Dipper." Mario tossed the badge to Dipper, who caught it and pinned it to his hat.

"Alright! My jump must be pretty powerful now!" Dipper said.

"Look, a door is over here." Mario pointed to a door at the end of the hall.

"Okay then, let's go!" Goombella said.

They all continued onward through the door, where they found another long hallway, although this one was thicker. It had skeletons crumbled on the ground, and another door at the end of the hall. A part of the hall was blocked off by some bars, and behind it was a red key, and it most likely opened up a locked door somewhere else in the castle.

"Well, this room is pretty straight forward." Dipper said, but the others began snickering. "What's so fun- Oh, right, "straight forward"." Dipper couldn't help but snicker as well. "Come on, let's go-" He was cut off as Koops ran past him in a hurry.

"Wha- Koops, wait up!" The others ran after him, only to find Koops standing around a pile of bones that resembled a Koopa, and blue boots were in the pile. Koops had a sad look on his face, and Dipper tried to console him.

"Koops, what's wrong?" Dipper asked. Koops turned to face him.

"This… this skeleton… it's all that remains of my father." Koops answered solemnly.

"Oh my…!" Pacifica gasped. "Koops, I'm… I'm so sorry…" She hugged the Koopa, trying to console him. Koops was a little surprised by the hug. Immediately she stopped hugging him. "Oh, sorry…"

"It's fine. Thanks." Koops noticed a note inside of the pile of bones. "Oh, my dad had a note… er, his bones do, I mean." Koops picked it up and read it, and once he got to the end, his eyes widened. "Um… whoops! It turns out, this skeleton wasn't my father."

"That's good." Goombella said. "That means he might still be around here somewhere, maybe just trapped in a cage!"

"Maybe, but the note said something really important." Koops said. "It said that to defeat Hooktail, we need to find something relevant to its weakness, which is something that starts with 'Cr' and ends with 'icket', but I don't know what that means."

"Well, we'll find out soon." Mario said.

"Yeah, that's some pretty valuable information right there." Dipper said.

"The note also mentioned that when Hooktail gets weak, it will try and play tricks on gullible warriors, and when they fall for said tricks…" Koops took a breath. "…they're eaten alive."

"Wow, talk about gruesome." Goombella said.

"Yeah…" Koops turned around and noticed something at the end of the hall by the doorway. "But wait… if this skeleton isn't my dads… maybe that one is?" He pointed to a skeleton lying in front of the doorway. The group made there way over to it. The pile of bones was red, with the boots being a darker red.

"This pile of bones doesn't look like my father…" Koops said. "Never mind, then."

"Hmm… strange. I'll move it." Dipper grabbed the pile of bones and began to move them out of the way, but as soon as he touched them, the bones started shaking before piecing themselves together, creating a red Koopa skeleton. The group took a step back, surprised.

"Who dares disturb me?" The skeleton spoke in an eerie voice. The five heroes were too frightened to answer. "Foolish travelers, you must suffer the punishment of trespassing!" A ton of walking Koopa skeletons dropped from the ceiling and covered almost every centimeter of the room. They tried to push the group out of the room, and the group struggled to break free.

"Ah! Let go!" Dipper tried to grab his staff, but to no avail. Mario managed to grab his hammer and began hammering the skeletons away, creating a path for the group to get through. They made there way back to the red skeleton, and Dipper smacked it with his staff. Then, all the normal Koopa skeletons disappeared except for four of them, and those four ran to sides of the red skeleton.

"Looks like we have a battle on our hands." Dipper said, adjusting his badges and readying his staff. "Goombella, does your book have any info on these things?" Goombella flipped through here tattle log.

"The gray skeletons are called Dull Bones! They're relatively weak, so they shouldn't be a problem!" Goombella said. She flipped to another page. "The red skeleton is called a Red Bones. It freaks me out cause of its high HP and attack power, and it can rebuild fallen allies! Talk about creepy!"

"I'll start this battle!" Koops said. He got into his shell and readied an attack. "Power Shell, go!" His shell spun around rapidly before he flung himself at the enemies, go through each of the Dull Bones, knocking them down, and dealing some damage to the Red Bones.

"Nice job, Koops!" Dipper said. "I got this turn!" He activated his Power Smash badge and his staff transformed. "Power Smash!" Dipper brought the hammer up and slammed it down on the Red Bones. It wasn't as strong as his previous Power Smashes, as he didn't store up as much power, but he still dealt a good deal of damage to the Red Bones.

"Now it's my turn!" Pacifica said. She jumped up and slammed her scepter down towards the Red Bones, but it dodged the attack, and managed to trip Pacifica in the process. Then in summoned a red bone in its hand and smacked Pacifica with it.

"Get off of my friend, freak!" Goombella shouted, stunning the Red Bones with a powerful headbonk attack, dealing some damage and allowing Pacifica to get away.

"I'll finish this thing off!" Mario held up his hammer and smashed it repeatedly on the Red Bones until it was a pile of red dust, then it disappeared in a cloud of smoke, and everything returned to normal.

"Well, I guess this place _was_ guarded after all." Pacifica said. "Thanks for saving me Goombella."

"Don't mention it!" Goombella said with a smile. "I don't like seeing friends get hurt! Now, let's get a move on! The Crystal Star is really close! I can practically feel it!"

The five heroes opened the door and proceeded on through the castle, ready to face off against the dragon Hooktail for their first Crystal Star.

**-(End Of Chapter)-**

**This one didn't take as long to write, but I think it came out good. Next chapter will probably be the Hooktail battle, so expect Chapter 2 (game-wise) to come soon. But, until then…**

**Stay Tuned!**

**~087-B**


	7. Chapter 1 - End: The Dreaded Hooktail

**Well, I think we're here… the finale of Chapter 1! With the gang now inside Hooktail Castle, they've only scratched the surface of what's inside! They're main mission is to obviously get to the top and defeat Hooktail, but they've uncovered some good news, and bad news. The good news is that the group has discovered Hooktail's weakness! The bad news is that Hooktail will do anything to save itself. It'll even play tricks and try to gobble down travelers whole! Of course, they still have to find something that was related to Hooktail's weakness, and a special surprise awaits them at the top of the castle! But enough talk, we should check on our five heroes.**

**Now, on with the show!**

_Chapter 1: Castle And Dragon - Part 4 - The Dreaded Hooktail_

"Get up." Hooktail's voice roared throughout the large colosseum room. Wendy lifted her head, stuck inside of a cage and covered in chains. She was bruised, and her spear and helmet were broken. Hooktail didn't have a scratch on it, and Wendy was so weak she could barely blink.

"I said get up." Wendy weakly got up, stumbling a bit.

"What do you want?!" Wendy asked angrily.

"You're my afternoon lunch." Hooktail said. "But I think I can spare you for just a little bit longer." Wendy stayed silent.

"…I'm sure they're around here…" Wendy said to herself. Hooktail heard her, its interest piquing.

"You have friends?" Hooktail smiled mischievously. "I think they'll make wonderful appetizers." Wendy gasped. She just gave away her friends and how they might come and save her… how could she have been so stupid to let the dragon know about them?

She glumly sat down in the cage. She knew her friends most likely weren't strong enough to take down this dragon, so she calmly accepted her fate.

Heck, she didn't know if her friends were even near her location.

:::::

The group had made it significantly farther into the castle, and they now entered a different looking room. It was lit up by the light coming in through the windows, and it had some cages in it, most likely a dungeon to keep prisoners in. They explored the room a little before Dipper noticed something out of the ordinary.

"Whoa, guys, check this out." Dipper gestured for the others to come to him, and they all looked between the bars of one of the cages, and inside the cage was a badge, a red circle with a large white musical note in the center.

"A badge?" Pacifica seemed confused. "Why would a badge be here?" She tried to reach through the bars to get it, but to no avail. Meanwhile, Dipper noticed a small hole in one the walls behind the bars of the cage next to the one containing the badge.

"How do we get in there?" Dipper looked around before noticing a red '!' switch nearby. Mario noticed his gaze and took out his hammer.

"I'm already ahead of you, Dipper." Mario smashed the hammer on the switch, and the bars rose upward into the wall. The group entered the now open cell, but after everyone was inside, the bars dropped back down again, trapping them inside.

"Aw shoot." Goombella said. "Now how do we get out?" Dipper was ahead of them, and was already crawling through the small entrance.

"We should follow him." Koops said, quickly crawling through the small hole as well, and the rest of the group followed suite.

The five of them emerged in another room, this one had a large Black Chest in the middle of it, and a door on the far wall.

"That chest seems familiar…" Pacifica said. "I could've sworn we've seen it before."

"We saw one in the Rogueport Sewers, right?" Goombella asked. "It gave us the ability to turn into paper airplanes."

"So _that's _where they got that power…" Koops thought to himself. The Black Chest shook a little bit, vibrating, before stopping.

"Whoa! You guys can hear me?!" A voice emerged from the Black Chest. "So you all must be the legendary heroes!"

"What… legendary heroes?" Koops was confused.

"So, since you guys can hear me…" The Black Chest began. "…then you guys can open up this chest for me, right? I've been trapped in here for over 1,000 years!"

"Nope, we aren't opening it." Mario said. "I don't want to risk being cursed again. We got lucky last time."

"Wait a second, Mario," Dipper began. "What if this really is just a new ability and not a curse? We should at least try."

"…alright." Mario said. "But if we run into any more chests like these after this, we are NOT opening them."

"Okay then." Dipper agreed with Mario, then turned to the Black Chest. "Alright, Black Chest, I'm assuming you need a key?"

"You're a step ahead of the game, man!" The Black Chest answered. "The key is nearby, I can just feel it! It might be in that room over there." The Black Chest leaned to the left toward a purple door.

"Okay then, seems easy enough." Dipper said. "We'll grab the key and get back as soon as we can."

"Oh thank you! Thank you so much!" The Black Chest said. "I shall happily await your return!"

:::::

Wendy struggled on the bars of the cage, trying to break free. She grabbed them and yanked hard, pulling and pushing with all her might, but she couldn't do anything.

"Foolish girl," Hooktail began. "I already know I have some visitors in this castle. Maybe you know them." Wendy looked up at Hooktail. "I saw a young boy in a blue vest, a white cap sat upon his head." Wendy gasped. "A young girl with blonde hair, a white undershirt and a red sleeveless shirt above it." Wendy knew it was Pacifica, but wondered why she was with Dipper, or even why they were there in the first place. "A man in overalls, a mustache, and a red cap." Wendy seemed very confused at that last one.

"That guy doesn't sound familiar." Wendy said.

"Whatever, I guess…" Hooktail thought for a moment. "…I guess that boy would make a pretty good appetizer… and the girl would make a nice flambé once I heat her up." Wendy shook the bars again.

"Don't you dare touch my friends!" Wendy said angrily. Hooktail chuckled.

"All we do is wait… but you get a nice few up top." Wendy's cage began to rise up to the ceiling.

"My friends will destroy you, you nasty dragon!" Wendy yelled. "Just you wait and see!"

:::::

"Here we go!" Dipper said, holding a key. The group entered the room to the left and ventured to the center, finding a wooden chest. Dipper opened it, and inside was the Black Key needed to open up the Black Chest in the previous room.

"Well, let's get out-" Goombella's sentence was cut short when spikes emerged from the ground almost everywhere, as well as the entire ceiling.

"Oh boy…" Koops said as the ceiling began to slowly descend.

"If we don't get out of here…" Mario said.

"…we'll be crushed to death!" Pacifica shouted. Seeing as the spikes that emerged from the ground formed a maze of sorts, the group had a bit of trouble navigating their way back through the room. The spikes had been centimeters away from the tops of their heads as soon as they made it back to the Black Chest in the other room.

"Sweet! You got the key!" The Black Chest said happily, shaking a bit.

"We almost got… crushed to death… by spikes!" Dipper said, obviously out of breath.

"Yeah yeah, whatever, unlock this box and let me out!" The Black Chest didn't care for their condition.

"We almost… died for this… stupid key!" Pacifica panted, out of breath as well.

"I don't care! I'm the important one here! Unlock me!" The Black Chest said angrily.

"Fine!" Dipper, annoyed, walked over to the Black Chest and stuck the key in the lock. Once he turned it, the chest shot open.

"Woo-hoo! Thank- Ha! Thank NOTHING!" The Chest Demon said. The room became pure darkness. "FOOOOLS!"

"W-Whoa! What's happening?!" Koops said frightened.

"This curse will be so terrifying! You'll probably-"

"Just curse us already!" Mario said, cutting off the Chest Demon and getting very impatient.

"Okay, okay!" The Black Chest said. "With this curse, if you think about being paper… you'll become as flat as paper!"

"…that's it?" Pacifica asked.

"What? What do you mean?" The Chest Demon was confused.

"Well, it doesn't seem like much of a curse." Pacifica said. "I mean, becoming paper? That's seems cool and all, but that's not frightening whatsoever."

"I don't need your opinion, brat!" The Chest Demon said. Pacifica growled at it. "Just take the curse and go!" The room returned to normal as the Chest Demon vanished, leaving nothing but the open, empty Black Chest behind.

"Well, this ability may prove useful!" Dipper said. "In fact…" Dipper crawled through the hole in the wall once more with the others following. Standing in front of the bars, he thought long and hard about paper.

"Dipper, are you doing what I think you're doing?" Mario asked. Dipper then became as flat as paper. He slid through the bars and escaped the cage, then returned to normal.

"Indeed, I did do what you thought I was doing!" Dipper said proudly. He dashed over to the red '!' switch and whacked it with his staff, causing the bars to rise up and release the rest of the group.

"Way-to-go, Dipper!" Pacifica cheered.

"Yeah, nice job dude!" Goombella said.

"It was nothing." Dipper said. "Wait, where's Mario?" The group turned to see Mario, flat as paper, sliding through the bars of the other cage, returning to normal, grabbing the badge, then turning back into paper and sliding out. He reverted to normal and held up the badge.

"I think we have found something useful." Mario said. He tossed the badge to Dipper, who read the note attached aloud.

"Attack FX F Badge. Requires 0 BP to wear. When worn, the sound the bearers melee attack makes will be different. This badge changes the sound to a Cricket chirp." Dipper's eyes widened. "A cricket chirp? Cricket starts with "Cr" and ends in "icket"!" Dipper quickly pinned the badge to his hat. He took out his staff and hit the ground with it. Upon making contact with the ground, the normal noise was heard, with a cricket chirp over it.

"I think we've just found the key to defeating Hooktail!" Goombella said. "We should be close to Hooktail by now! Let's go get that Crystal Star!" The others nodded and exited the room.

:::::

The group came to another room. It was small with one window, a few chests, and multiple crates containing battle axes, maces, shields, and swords. One even contained pieces of a guillotine. As soon as they entered, however, they saw they weren't alone.

"Oh my my, I never expected to be followed here." A feminine voice said. The group saw a small, white mouse lady with a heart shaped tail, red high heels, and a red masquerade mask.

"Do you plan on being any trouble to us?" Dipper asked. "We're kind of on a mission to find a gem called the Crystal Star, and we don't want any problems on the way."

"A Crystal Star?" The mouse lady was confused. "I've never run across such a treasure in this place." Dipper was nervous now. Why did he give away their plan? "But I've already gotten what I've came here for." She gestured to one of the open chests. "I'm Ms. Mowz, a world renowned badge hunter."

"I'm Dipper." Dipper said.

"I'm Pacifica." Pacifica said.

"My name's Goombella." Goombella said.

"The name's Mario." Mario said.

"And I'm Koops." Koops said.

"Ah, I've never heard of you five before, but I'll tell you some valuable information on finding this "Crystal Star." You may find it useful." Ms. Mowz said. "The secret to defeating that brute, Hooktail, is located in this castle in the form of a badge."

"We've already gotten the badge, ma'am." Dipper said, pointing to the Attack FX F badge on his hat.

"Well, one step ahead, now are we?" Ms. Mowz walked slowly over to Dipper and Mario, then kissed the two of them on the cheek. The two were shocked and blushed very hard. Ms. Mowz leaped on to the windowsill.

"Well, I shall be taking my leave now." Ms. Mowz said. "I'll see you around, Mr. Mustache and Little Hat Boy…" She jumped out the window, and the group didn't see her after that.

"Oh geez…" Dipper's blushing died down.

"That was… exhilarating to say the least." Mario said. His blushing died down as well.

"I'm a bit envious of you guys." Koops said.

"You guys must get all the ladies!" Goombella said annoyed. "Though, that Ms. Mowz seems a bit too flirtatious, if you ask me." She noticed something poking out of one of the chests. She walked over to the chest and opened it, revealing a key to a door in the castle.

"Aw, sweet!" Goombella grabbed the key and tossed it to Mario, who grabbed it successfully. "Alright gang, let's move on!"

:::::

Wendy sat in her cage, bored as heck, when she noticed something out of the corner of her eye. On the bridge below, connecting the castle to the tower, the two big purple doors pushed open, with something emerging from inside the castle.

"What's that over there?" Wendy whispered to herself so Hooktail wouldn't hear her.

:::::

The five heroes pushed the doors open, coming onto the large bridge that connected the castle and a large tower. Koopas and Paratroopas guarded the bridge.

"Well guys, this is it." Goombella said. "This is the last stand between us and Hooktail!" The group had some trouble defeating the enemies due to the somewhat large amounts, but they were able to get through without wasting FP or Star Power (SP). They crossed the bridge and ran up the spiral stairwell. At the top was a Spiky Goomba but they easily defeated it. Going up a few more steps, the group found a large set of purple double-doors.

"Well, Hooktail should be inside that room, guys." Dipper said.

"We've come so far…" Pacifica stared at the giant doors. "…and the Crystal Star is right behind that door."

"Wait guys, what's that?" Koops pointed at some rubble lying in front of the doors. The group walked over to the rubble.

"It's a broken spear, and a crushed helmet." Mario said. A spear was indeed snapped in half, and a spiked helmet was crushed into tiny little pieces.

"Do you think someone was here?" Pacifica asked.

"Maybe…" Dipper thought for a moment. "…what if that belonged to one of our friends?"

"That… might be true." Mario said. "Your friends could be anywhere… maybe one is here."

"You don't think Hooktail might've gobbled them up, do you?" Dipper asked. He was worried if Mabel had stumbled across Hooktail.

"It seems unlikely." Mario said. "I'm sure your friends are strong."

"Okay…" Dipper pulled out his staff looked at the other four. "Well, are you guys ready?"

"I'm ready for this." Pacifica said as she pulled out her scepter and twirled it around a bit.

"Let's-a-go." Mario said, pulling out his hammer.

"Count me in." Goombella said.

"I'm prepared." Koops said.

"Alright then…" Dipper turned toward the door and grabbed the handle. "Let's go in."

He pushed the doors open.

:::::

The group entered, and to no surprise, they saw the large red dragon known as Hooktail. Hooktail stomped a foot down and roared.

"Hmm, so you are the 'friends' spoken of by the prisoner?" Hooktail asked. "You seem very tasty."

"What prisoner…?" Dipper seemed confused.

"Dipper?!" Dipper turned and looked up to see a caged Wendy. His eyes widened and his jaw dropped.

"W-Wendy?!" He took a step back surprised. "You're… why are you… what are you doing here?!"

"Wait, what are you doing here?! What is this place?!" Wendy bombarded Dipper with a bunch of questions. Hooktail roared again.

"Silence, prisoner! Or else you shall be an early snack!" Hooktail looked at the five heroes. "Hmm… the bottoms of your feet would make good starting appetizers, and your insides would be very good seasonings… oh, who cares! I'll just gobbled you down HEADFIRST!" Hooktail tried to eat the group, and they swiftly dodged.

The battle had begun.

"Dipper!" Mario called out. "Activate the badge!"

"Right!" Dipper activated the Attack FX F badge and jumped upward towards Hooktail, smacking it in the head with his staff. A cricket noise played, and immediately Hooktail began to feel woozy.

"Whoa… was that a cr-cricket?" Hooktail made a loud gulp as if trying to hold back vomit. "I h-hate crickets!"

"Ah-ha!" Dipper landed on the ground with a smile of determination. "The badge works!" Goombella launched a headbonk, but Hooktail countered by breathing fire on Goombella, sending her falling back to the ground, but she quickly got back up and dodged a biting attack, then Koops launched a shell toss and successfully hit Hooktail.

Meanwhile, Wendy watched in shock from the cage at the power Dipper had shown. What had he been doing all this time?

Mario attacked with a jump attack, landing two good hits on Hooktail's snout, but Hooktail attacked by biting Mario, then slamming Pacifica with its tail.

"Hey, Hooktail!" Dipper called out. "How about we play some 'cricket'?" Dipper jumped up and hit Hooktail's snout again with his staff, causing another cricket chirp to erupt from the staff, making Hooktail feel dizzy.

"Nice one, Dipper!" Pacifica said, hitting Hooktail's ankle with her scepter.

'Since when did Pacifica start complimenting Dipper?' Wendy thought. '…wait, since when did Pacifica start fighting alongside Dipper? When did Pacifica start fighting?!'

Dipper made another attack, this time activating the Power Bounce badge this time. His shoes turned into glowing blue boots, and he jumped up on to Hooktail's snout, bouncing repeatedly on it. He landed about five good bounces before slipping up and falling, landing on the floor, but getting back up quickly, as his shoes returned to normal.

"W-Wait!" Hooktail woozily called out. The battle had momentarily stopped.

"What do you want?" Dipper angrily asked.

"Please, if you spare me…" Hooktail began. "…I'll pay you 1,000 coins!"

"Keep your coins, fraud!" Pacifica yelled. "We know you play tricks on unassuming people!"

"What?! I'd never play tricks…" Hooktail disagreed with Pacifica. "…but if you spare me, I'll give you an incredibly rare badge!" Dipper raised an eyebrow, intrigued.

"…what does this badge do?" Dipper asked.

"It automatically makes your body counter against enemies perfectly, and you always hit enemies every time!" Hooktail answered. "It makes you the perfect warrior!"

"Well, if you say 'perfect'…" Dipper began to walk forward, but Mario stopped him.

"Keep your badge, cad!" Mario said. "No such badge even exists!"

"Fine then, but if you really want…" Hooktail took a breath. "…I'll let you smell the bottoms of my feet! People pay a lot of money to smell the bottoms of my feet! So what do you say?"

"That's just disgusting!" Dipper yelled. "What, do you think I have a fetish?!"

"Everyone in the Mushroom Kingdom has a fetish for something!" Hooktail said. Dipper looked at Mario, who simply shook his head, indicating Hooktail was lying.

"You're really creepy, Hooktail." Goombella said.

"Well, I guess I better…" Hooktail slammed the chain holding Wendy's cage with its tail, breaking it. The cage fell to the ground and smashed. Wendy weakly crawled out, but Hooktail scooped her up in its mouth and swallowed her whole.

"No, WENDY!" Dipper shouted. Hooktail smiled an evil smile.

"I feel better already!" The battle resumed.

Mario jumped and smacked Hooktail with his hammer right on its jaw. It shook off the attack and bit Pacifica, but Pacifica countered by hitting Hooktail's eye with her scepter.

Koops did a shell toss which Hooktail evaded, but Goombella did a headbonk and landed some decent damage on Hooktail. Hooktail wobbled a bit, but it wasn't finished.

"Take THIS!" Dipper activated the Power Smash badge and, as his staff transformed into the large spiked hammer, jumped up and smashed the hammer down on Hooktail's snout.

"**Power Smash!**" Dipper landed on the ground, panting heavily, and his staff returned to normal.

"No!" Hooktail shouted. It stumbled a bit, then its eyes started rolling rapidly. "So many things I wanted to do in life… so many meals…" Hooktail let out one final roar before falling over onto its back. It didn't move, and it didn't make any attempt to get up

It was defeated.

:::::

The room shook when Hooktail landed on its back, but the battle was finally over.

"Phew." Dipper wiped sweat from his forehead. "It's finally over."

"We did it!" Pacifica cheered, wiping dust from her clothes, something she had never done before the Warp Pipe Incident. "But… where's Wendy and the Crystal Star?"

Just then, Hooktail's stomach rumbled, and lumps began going through its neck, before it spat out a blue shell of a Koopa and Wendy. The shell landed firmly on the ground, and Wendy hit the ground with a loud thud.

"Wendy!" Dipper ran over to Wendy. She got up slowly and rubbed her head.

"What happened…?" Wendy wobbled around a bit before regaining her balance. "Dipper?" She remembered where she was and what was happening. "Again, where are we?"

"Oh boy, I've got a LOT of explaining to do." Dipper said. "You see, it began with this pipe in the forest near the Mystery Shack…" While Dipper explained the situation to the newly rescued Wendy, Koops walked over to the shell. It jumped up and opened, revealing a blue-shelled Koopa with bushy brown eyebrows and a small brown beard.

"…d-dad?!" Koops' voice was shaky.

"K-Koops?!" Koops' Father was surprised to see his son.

"Dad!" Koops hugged his father tightly, who returned the hug. Mario, Goombella, and Pacifica walked over to them.

"Where were you? What happened to you?" Koops asked. "We all thought your game was over! You know, like your story was abruptly ended!"

"Well, I went off to fight Hooktail, and just when I was about to win," Koops' Father said. "That foul beast played a trick on me and gobbled me down whole! I survived by hiding inside of my shell!"

"…and then we came here in search of the Crystal Star!" Dipper finished explaining everything to Wendy. She sort of understood what was happening.

"So, the goal here is to help this Mario guy collect a bunch of stars made of crystals?" Wendy scratched her head. "That's quite a lot to process, but I guess it makes sense." They had rejoined the others.

"I'm so happy you're okay!" Koops said, but he remembered something. "Oh, dad, while you were down there… did you happen to find a gem called a Crystal Star?"

"Huh? I don't think I did… Do you mean this?" Koops' Father held up a big gem shaped like a star. It was light grey, more over white, and it sparkled in the sunlight that shined through the windows. The heroes gasped. "I found it down there in Hooktail's belly, and I decided to keep it as a souvenir! But if you want it, any friend of Koops is a friend of mine!"

He dropped the Crystal Star on the ground in front of them, and Mario walked over and grabbed it. The Crystal Star floated around him in circles before He held it up in the air. Everyone clapped.

They had finally gotten their first Crystal Star.

**-{****End Of Chapter 1****}-**

**Yes! The Castle And Dragon arc is complete!**

**Mario and friends successfully made it to Petal Meadows with knowledge of the whereabouts of the first Crystal Star! They got inside Hooktail Castle and bested the wretched Hooktail, rescuing Wendy and Koops' Father, whom he thought was dead.**

**With Wendy now added to the group, and the first Crystal Star in hand, Mario and the others continue their quest in search of the rest of the Crystal Stars, but where is Princess Peach? And where are the rest of Dipper and Pacifica's friends? These questions will be answered as the adventure continues…**

**Save all story progress up to this point?**

**Saving, do not press the power button on your laptop or home button on your mobile device…**

**Save complete.**

**Stay Tuned!**

**~087-B**


	8. Chapter 1 - Interlude

_Chapter 1 Interlude - The X-Nauts, TEC, And One Pompous Oaf_

The gang had just received their first Crystal Star, but as they returned to Petalburg, something different was happening in another part of the world.

A robotic person with a dome shaped head, a large black overcoat, and a strange staff with a black orb with a white X on it rested on top. The room he was in was large metallic room with metal torches with blue fire on top, and a big, strange circle symbol in the middle of the floor, and Lord Crump stood near one of the torches. On the far wall was a blue metallic door. It slid open and one of the mysterious overcoats walked in.

"Um, Sir Grodus, sir?" The overcoat began.

"Speak, X-Naut." The robot man Sir Grodus said, calling the strange overcoats X-Nauts.

"We, uh, brought the two prisoners you wanted, sir dude, sir." The X-Naut stuttered.

"Good." Sir Grodus said. "Bring them in."

"Yes sir." The X-Naut crossed his arms upward in an X shape, saluting Sir Grodus, then walked out of the room. He and another X-Naut returned into the room, holding a young lady in a pink dress and long blonde hair with a small golden crown on her head. They held her arms firm, and she didn't struggle at all.

"Ah, Princess Peach," Sir Grodus said to the princess. "Welcome to the X-Naut Fortress."

"Who are you?" Peach asked. "What do you want me for?"

"We need you to… wait a second." Grodus turned to one of the two X-Nauts. "Where is the second prisoner?"

"Um, about that, sir Grodus dude, sir…" The X-Naut rubbed the back of its head. "The other prisoner is a bit… feisty." Then the doors reopened, and two more X-Nauts entered carrying another prisoner, this one struggled to break free of their grasps.

"Let go of me, you cross-eyed freaks!" Mabel Pines tried to pull her arms out of the X-Nauts' grasp, but she wasn't able to free herself. The X-Nauts dropped her next to Peach, but she didn't try and run, knowing that she could be in a dangerous place.

"There she is, dude. I mean sir." The X-Naut said. He saluted and walked out of the room.

"Who the hey-hey are you? And why are those freaks carrying me everywhere?!" Mabel angrily yelled questions at Grodus.

"Allow me to elaborate." Grodus began. "My name is Grodus, but you will call me Sir Grodus. I know you two as Princess Peach and Mabel Pines." Mabel was a little frightened by this strange man and his seemingly endless knowledge. How did this guy know who she was? Where in the world was she anyway?! "This is the X-Naut Fortress. I am the leader of the X-Naut army, and you two are of utmost importance to us and our plans." He turned to Princess Peach. "Princess, I'm aware you have knowledge of the location of the Magical Map. You will tell me where it is."

"Never! I'll never tell!" Peach said. Just then, a holographic monitor appeared in the air near the center of the room, with an X-Naut appearing on it. Everyone in the room turned to look at it.

"Um, sir?" The X-Naut began. "I have some, uh, bad news, sir."

"Spit it out already." Grodus said.

"It appears that someone, um, already found the, uh, Crystal Star that dragon Hooktail was guarding. They nabbed it." The X-Naut said.

"What?!" Grodus was shocked. "Who else could possibly be after the Crystal Stars?!"

"Some chubby mustached guy with a red hat, and some short kid with a blue and white hat, sir Grodus, dude, sir." The X-Naut answered.

"Mario!" Peach gasped.

"Dipper!" Mabel gasped.

"Ah, I see…" Grodus said. "…very well, I have an idea to take care of this 'Mario' and 'Dipper' you speak of. Be off, X-Naut."

"Right, sir." The X-Naut on the monitor saluted before the monitor disappeared.

"You guards take the prisoners back to their rooms." Grodus commanded.

"Yes sir." The other X-Nauts said.

"And I want them to both get back unharmed." Grodus added. "Now, off with you." The X-Nauts saluted before taking Peach and Mabel back to their prison room. Grodus turned to a PhD looking X-Naut in a white lab coat and a blue overcoat.

"Now, X-Naut, bring me the Shadow Sirens." Grodus commanded.

"Yes sir dude, sir." The X-Naut walked out of the room. Almost immediately, three figures rose out of the ground. One was a short purple figure with gray hair and a blue-white striped hat, one was a larger, overweight purple figure with short dark-gold hair and a yellow-white striped hat, and the last was a mid-sized purple figure with pink hair and a red-white striped hat. The three of them were female, also.

"You called, Sir Grodus?" The short one asked.

"Ah, Beldam." Grodus began. "You had the map back in Rogueport, why did you not get it from the princess?"

"I would've, sir," The short one called Beldam began. "But there were too many prying eyes. Too many… and before I could grab it, some old man came and took the princess away in a split second. There was simply nothing I could do."

"Very well, then…" Grodus began. "It appears two people named 'Mario' and 'Dipper' have come into possession of the Magical Map."

"And you require us to get it?" Beldam asked.

"Yes, and we've already pinpointed the location of the next Crystal Star." Grodus said. "It is located in the Boggly Woods. I need you three to ambush Mario and Dipper before they get there."

"Right away, sir." Beldam vanished into the ground.

"Guuuuuuuh." The large one vanished into the ground.

"Tee-hee!" The mid-sized one vanished into the ground. Lord Crump turned to Grodus.

"Anything you want me to do sir?" Lord Crump asked.

"Hmm…" Grodus thought for a moment. "…go off to Boggly Woods as well. I'm sure the Shadow Sirens will need some assistance."

"Right away, sir!" Lord Crump said. "Crump away!" He dashed out the doorway.

"I wonder…" Grodus thought for another moment. "I wonder if sending Crump out there was a good idea or not. He's a bit… out there." Grodus shrugged off the thought.

:::::

Mabel flopped onto the bed of the room she and Peach were in.

"I don't even know what's happening." Mabel said.

"Well, I'm kidnapped… again." Peach said to herself. "Mario and Toadsworth must be worried sick… again." Peach turned to Mabel. "And some girl is with me…"

Mabel lifted her head up and turned to face Peach.

"That guy said you were a princess." Mabel said. "Is that true?"

"Why, yes." Peach said. "I'm a princess. Shouldn't you know that?"

"I didn't know." Mabel said. "I don't live where you live."

"You don't live in the Mushroom Kingdom?" Peach asked.

"The Mushroom Whatnow?" Mabel was confused. Peach gave a small smile.

"This is the second time I'll have to explain this." Peach began telling Mabel how the world they live in is known as the Mushroom Kingdom, and how she rules over it as the princess. She told her about Mario and the many things he's done for everyone. By the time she was done, Mabel seemed to understand.

"So that means this is an alternate world?" Mabel asked. "Awesome!"

"Quite carefree, I see." Peach said. "Now according to what you said, Miss Mabel, you come from a town called Granny Fails?"

"It's Gravity Falls, princess." Mabel corrected Peach. "Not Granny Fails."

"Oh, sorry." They were about to continue their conversation when a door opened by itself, nobody on the other side.

"Yes! A way out!" Without thinking, Mabel bolted for the door. Peach decided to follow.

Exiting the room, Peach and Mabel found themselves in a long corridor filled with pipes, grates, and an elevator in the middle. All the way on the other side was another door.

"Well, let's go, I guess." Peach said. The two walked all the way down to the end of the hallway, and upon getting there, the door on that side opened automatically as well.

"How does this happen?" Peach asked herself. The two walked into the room to see a giant computer screen in the wall with a camera above it, and a small keyboard mounted inside a large control panel right in front of it.

[Hello Princess Peach. Hello Mabel Pines.] The computer said. The two were shocked to hear it speak. [I am known as TEC XX, but you may call me TEC. I am the worlds most perfect computer.]

"Um… okay then, uh, TEC." Peach said. "Where you the one who opened up those doors?"

[Indeed.] TEC said. [If you have any questions about this place or if you need anything, you may ask me. I can answer any question.]

"Well, TEC…" Mabel began. "Where exactly are we?"

[You are in the X-Naut Fortress. The X-Nauts need you for their plan.] TEC answered.

"That doesn't exactly answer her question, TEC." Peach said.

[I'm sorry. I cannot tell you the name of the exact area where the base is located.] TEC said.

"Oh, well…" Peach had an idea. "TEC, do you have messaging support?"

[Yes. I am the worlds perfect computer.] TEC answered.

"Well, may I send an e-mail to a friend using your, um, keyboard?" Peach asked. She needed to let Mario know she was okay.

[You may. It is permitted.] TEC answered. Peach walked over to the keyboard and began typing a message. Then, she hit Enter and the message was sent to Mario.

"What about me?" Mabel asked. Peach turned to look at her. "My brother Dipper is with this Mario guy, so I need to let him know I'm okay."

[Processing Data.] TEC outputted coding on his screen. Eventually, the lines of code vanished. [The boy you call Dipper does not posses a Mailbox SP or any other form of message receiver. Instant messages cannot be sent to this individual.] Mabel looked down solemnly. [Wait…] TEC processed more data. […data shows that the boy possesses a book entitled '3'. This book has a universal receiver.]

"The journal!" Mabel gasped. "But… it's a book. How does it receive messages?" TEC processed even more data.

[…that question has no valid answer. An explanation is that the book is not of this world.] TEC answered. [It will take more time, but you may send a message to Dipper through this book, Mabel.] Mabel happily dashed over to the keyboard and typed up a message. She hit enter, and after a minute or two, the message was sent to Dipper.

[It is getting late. You must return to your cell.] TEC said. The two walked over to the door just as it opened. [Goodnight Mabel. Goodnight princess.]

"Um, good night… TEC." Peach said before walking out of the room, followed by Mabel. The door shut again, and the lights in the room dimmed.

:::::

Meanwhile, in yet another part of the world, in a darker looking area, a castle sat upon a rock pillar above lava. Inside the castle was a throne, and on the throne sat a large, dinosaur-like anthropomorphic turtle, one with a spiked shell, horns, and spiked wristbands and a spiked neckband. Beside the throne was a smaller Koopa like lady in a purple robe and purple witches hat with some glasses on.

"So, Kammy, what you're telling me is some other goon has kidnapped the princess," The turtle began. "And that wretched Mario is searching for gems called Crystal Stars?"

"Indeed, lord Bowser." The turtle mage Kammy said. "If we leave now, maybe we can catch up to Mario, but he appears to already be in a group with others. A goomba girl, a koopa, a boy in a hat, a blonde girl, and a teenage girl."

"Sounds easy enough." Bowser said. "But how do we know where he is?"

"That's where _I_ come in!" The two heard a slightly squeaky voice. They looked toward the green double-doors at the other side of the long hallway-like throne room. The doors pushed open, revealing a smaller individual, a male, one with very pale white skin, black shoes, and an orange outfit, one that you would see on a prisoner, and handcuffs locked on his hands. But his most striking feature was his large white pompadour hair-cut that stood upright on his head.

"And who are you, squirt?" Bowser asked.

"Lil' Gideon Gleeful, at your services." Gideon said. "Now, if you can just free me from these handcuffs, your highness…" Gideon gave an eerie smile. "…I'll make this meeting a **lot** more worth your time."

**-(End Of Chapter)-**

**The first of many interludes, this time with the first appearances of Princess Peach, Grodus, The Shadow Sirens, Mabel, TEC, Bowser, Kammy, and Gideon! Talk about a ton of debuts here! Hope you enjoyed this chapter, reviews are appreciated, and as always…**

**Stay Tuned!**

**~087-B**


	9. Post-Chapter 1: Millennium Door 2

**Hey guys, 087-B here with yet another chapter. Not really sure what to name this one… how about the chapters between game chapters be called Post-Chapters? Yeah, that works.**

**Now, on with the show!**

_Post-Chapter 1: The Millennium Door Revisited_

"You really have to leave?" Koops' Father asked. They had all left Hooktail Castle and made their way back to Petalburg.

"I don't have to, dad." Koops answered. "…but I want to. I want to go off with Mario and the rest and hopefully come back a stronger Koopa!"

"Well, if it's really what you want…" Koops' Father began. "Then I won't stop you."

"Thanks, dad." Koops replied. The two shared one last hug before Koops turned to Mario and the rest. "Sorry, goodbyes are hard on everyone here in Petalburg. Let's go!" They were about to continue when they heard a female voice call out to them.

"Koops!" Koops turned to see a female Koopa with a blonde ponytail and pink accessories running toward them.

"Oh, Koopie Koo." Koops and Koopie Koo hugged each other.

"Promise me, Koops…" Koopie Koo began. "Promise me you'll return unharmed."

"I promise, Koopie Koo." Koops replied.

:::::

After the somewhat emotional goodbyes, the six heroes were now walking down the path outside Petalburg, beginning to make their way back to the pipe that they used to get to Petal Meadows from the Rogueport Sewers.

"So where are we going next?" Koops asked.

"Well, according to the legend," Dipper began. "We need to return to the Thousand-Year Door to hold the newly received Crystal Star aloft." Dipper thought for a moment. "At least, that's what I think it said."

"What's so special about a big door?" Wendy asked. "Sounds kinda boring to me."

"You haven't seen anything yet." Goombella said. "It's spectacular."

"If you say so…" Wendy replied. "So I still don't get what's up with you guys. This new world is… pretty strange."

"You'll get used to it." Mario said. "Dipper and Pacifica already have."

"That reminds me," Wendy began. "Pacifica, why are you so… nice all-of-a-sudden?"

"This world…" Pacifica began her answer. "…it left an impact on me. It has so many quirky characters, yet so many dangers, it helped me to realize I'll have to change if I want to stay alive in this world and not be left alone."

A beeping noise was heard.

"What was that?" Dipper asked.

"It's my Mailbox SP." Mario answered. He pulled out a small electronic device. "The message is from Princess Peach!" He opened the message and read it aloud.

_Dear Mario,_

_I'm alright, just so you know. These people who kidnapped me are called the X-Nauts, and they need me and this other girl named Mabel for a plan of sorts. I don't like the sound of it. Also, the X-Nauts know about the Magical Map and the Crystal Stars, and they're hunting them down. They know about you, so be careful!_

_I know you can do it. And please… don't worry about me, okay?_

_From, Peach_

"A girl named Mabel?!" Dipper gasped. "That must be my sister!" Then he felt a vibration coming from his backpack. He opened it and pulled out Journal #3. It vibrated heavily and glowed a deep purple aura. When it stopped vibrating, Dipper opened it up, and a new page was there with a message formed on it.

"It's a message from Mabel…?" Dipper was confused, but he read it anyway.

_Dear Dipper,_

_Hey bro! How are ya? …okay, it's time to get serious. These X-Snots, or whatever they're called, kidnapped me and locked me up in their base with a princess. They say both of us are vital to some plan, and they're looking for some Mario guy, who has some sort of map and a star. What does it mean?_

_I'm safe for now, Dipper. Don't worry about me, just… figure everything out, okay?_

_Mabel_

"She's…" Dipper stuttered. "She's okay…"

"You must feel pretty happy to hear that." Wendy said. "My only question is how did that weird book get an e-mail?"

:::::

The group made their way back into the Rogueport Sewers and were nearing the chamber of the Thousand-Year Door. Upon entering the room, Koops and Wendy were awestruck at the size and beauty of the aged legendary door.

"Well Mario, you're the one with the star." Dipper said. "Would you do the honors?"

"Certainly." Mario stepped up on to the pedestal in front of the Thousand-Year Door and held up the Diamond Star. The light show had begun once again.

"W-Whoa! What the heck?!" Wendy shouted as she saw the ancient symbol filled light patterns appear on the ground they stood on.

In the North most part of the light circle was a small circle. Seven of these circles surrounded the pedestal. The Diamond Star hovered over the circle, then disappeared. Next, Mario held up the Magical Map, and a light beam shot down from the ceiling and exploded on the map. When everything returned to normal, the others gathered around Mario, who was holding the map for them all to see. Even Wendy decided to join them, as mystified as she was.

On the map, in the center, a little above the picture of Rogueport, was a small picture of a tree, a black one with white leaves, sitting in the middle of a black and white forest looking area. Overlaying the tree was a picture of a green Crystal Star.

"So that's the location of the second Crystal Star, huh?" Pacifica asked. "I wonder where that is."

"Well, maybe we should go see Professor Frankly about it." Pacifica suggested.

"Who?" Koops and Wendy asked in unison.

:::::

"Hmm, how strange…" Professor Frankly looked at the map. "I don't really know where this is."

"Not this again…" Dipper face-palmed.

"This might take a while. Talk about a mind-boggling predicament." Frankly gasped in realization. "Ah, I've remembered! The Crystal Star appears to be located in a place called the Boggly Woods!"

"Well, now we know where it is." Wendy said.

"Yeah, but how exactly do we **get** there?" Pacifica asked.

"The same way you got to Petal Meadows." Frankly answered. "Through a pipe in the Rogueport Sewers. I can't really decipher where the pipe is, so it will take some time to find out. Come back later today and I'll see what information I've gathered by then."

"Okay then, professor." Mario said. The gang left the house.

"So… what now?" Koops asked.

"I say we spend the rest of the day making preparations." Dipper suggested. "We don't know the difficulty Boggly Woods will throw at us, so it's best to gear up."

"I think that's a smart idea." Goombella agreed. "We all split up and do different tasks so we gear up to an equal amount, then meet at the inn by sundown."

"Okay then." Mario said. "Dipper and Pacifica, you stock up on badges. Get useful ones that we may need."

"On it." Dipper said. He and Pacifica walked off back toward Central Rogueport.

"Koops, you and Wendy gather items from the shops here in Rogueport. There are two shops, one in the Central area, and one in the West area." Mario continued.

"Sounds good." Koops said. He and Wendy walked off toward the shops.

"What do _we_ do?" Goombella asked.

"Hmm…" Mario thought for a moment. "I think I have an idea."

:::::

Dipper and Pacifica exited the Rogueport badge shop, the Lovely Howz Of Badges, carrying a small pouch filled with as many badges they could afford. Dipper sold his Attack FX F badge for a whopping 100 coins, and spent about half of the earnings on badges.

One of the badges looked like a blue version of Power Smash but with a blue diamond in the center called Piercing Blow. It pierced through a single enemies defense and did damage based on the regular power of the melee weapon used. Pacifica pinned it on her shirt.

Another badge looked like a blue square with a golden swirl in the middle called Pretty Lucky. It made enemies miss the bearer more often when the bearer was attacked. Pacifica pinned this one on her shirt as well.

The final badge they bought looked like a gray boot with two little spikes on the bottom called Power Jump. It allowed the bearer to do a single jump on one enemy, but the jump would do a lot of damage. Neither of them used it, and decided it would suit Mario best.

"Oh, Dipper, I almost forgot." Pacifica said. "Here." She took out badge that resembled a red hammer.

"Whoa…" Dipper took the badge. The note attached had yellowed with age, had some rips and wrinkles, and had some dirt stains. Dipper could barely read the note. "Fire Drive. Requires 3 BP to wear. When worn, the bearer is capable of using Fire Drive, hitting a falling fireball toward the enemies. The closest enemy takes the most damage, and the farther down the enemy, the less damage it takes." He pinned the badge to his hat. "Where did you get this?"

"I found this place called the Pit of 100 Trials." Pacifica said. "I decided to go down there to practice my fighting. I got to Floor 10 and found a badge called Sleepy Stomp, and on Floor 20 was this badge. I thought you'd like it."

"It's… it's awesome, Pacifica." Dipper said. "Thanks. But what did you do with the Sleepy Stomp badge?" Pacifica gestured to her bedazzled belt. On it was a badge that looked like a green sock with a smile on it.

"It's about time I get some badges." Pacifica said. "Maybe someday we can explore the rest of the Pit of 100 Trails, maybe get down to the bottom…" Pacifica thought for a moment. "I wonder what's at the bottom anyway…"

:::::

Koops and Wendy exited West Side Goods on the West side of Rogueport. Wendy carried a shopping bag filled with Super Shrooms, Volt Shrooms, and Life Shrooms, which Koops paid for considering Wendy had no coins.

"It feels so weird." Wendy said. "Normally I'd leave a shopping mall with a bag filled with soda and candy, but instead… I have a bunch of mushrooms."

"Like Mario said, you'll get used to this world quickly, Ms. Wendy." Koops said.

"Don't call me 'Ms. Wendy'." Wendy said. "Normal 'Wendy' is just fine."

"Oh, sorry." Koops apologized.

"Don't say sorry." Wendy said. "I understand you feel a little… uncomfortable in these new surroundings, I do too, but we can get used to it, right?"

"…yeah, you're right, Wendy." Koops said. When the two arrived in Central Rogueport, Koops stopped in front of the inn. "I'll be right back, I've got to get something."

"Okay then, but don't doze off… aw dang, I forgot something back at West Side Goods." Wendy said, walking off back toward the West Side. Koops walked inside the inn and returned outside holding a small brown box. He opened it, and inside was a Couples Cake

"Good, it's still intact." Koops said to himself. He closed the box and walked off toward the East Side.

:::::

Mario and Goombella returned to the East Side of Rogueport with a few small packages.

"Well, we did good, didn't we?" Goombella asked.

"Yeah, we did." Mario agreed. "Now we wait for the others." They noticed Koops come toward them.

"Hey guys." Koops said.

"Hey Koops." Goombella greeted. She noticed the box. "What'cha got there?"

"Oh, this?" Koops said. "It's… it's nothing." Then Dipper and Pacifica arrived.

"We've got badges!" Pacifica said, tossing the Power Jump badge at Mario, who caught it and pinned it on his overalls. Then Wendy arrived.

"I've got a few supplies." Wendy said. She showed the group all the Super Shrooms, Volt Shrooms, and Life Shrooms. "Think this'll sustain us?"

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure this'll be good." Dipper said. "Well, should we go see Frankly now?"

"Now seems like the right time." Koops said.

:::::

"Well, I've found the pipe." Frankly said. "The pipe is located in a room next to the chamber of the Thousand-Year Door."

"That helps a lot." Pacifica said. "Oh, wait, Mario and Goombella, what's in those boxes? You never told us." Mario and Goombella smiled, opening the boxes and letting out very good smells.

"We thought we all could use some relaxing, so we brought dinner!" Mario said.

For the next while, the seven of them feasted on slices of Shroom Cake, plates of Spicy Pasta, Shroom Steaks, Shroom Fries, Shroom Roasts, and Shroom Crepes. While the others talked over their meals, Koops gestured for Pacifica to follow him outside.

"Yeah, Koops?" Pacifica and Koops stood outside Frankly's home.

"Well, I wanted you to have this." Koops showed the box to Pacifica and opened it. Pacifica gasped.

"A Couples Cake!" She took it out of the box and smiled.

"I know it's your favorite." Koops said.

"I love it! But… why did you get me this?" Pacifica asked.

"Well… you helped me back in Petalburg. You helped me come out of my shell… well, not literally." Koops said, blushing a bit. "We got along so well, we did so much… you helped me save my father from Hooktail…" Koops wanted to continue, but Pacifica kissed him on the cheek, making his face go red.

"It means a lot, and I know what you're trying to say." Pacifica said. "I'm flattered. But what about Koopie Koo?"

"She and I don't get along too much anymore." Koops said. "I plan on breaking up with her anyway, I'll let her down easy."

"Oh…" Pacifica said. She smiled again and hugged Koops, then pulled out two spoons. "It _is_ called a _Couples_ Cake, after all." Koops smiled, and the two dined on a sweet Couples Cake for the rest of the evening.

:::::

Later at night, in the inn, Dipper stared out the window once more, looking North toward where Boggly Woods would be. He sighed before lying back down on the bed.

"I wonder what lies ahead in Boggly Woods, the trials we may face." His eyes became heavy. "I guess I'll find out tomorrow."

He drifted off to sleep.

**-(End Of Chapter)-**

**Well, another day another chapter uploaded. Hope you guys enjoyed, reviews are appreciated, and as always…**

**Stay Tuned!**

**~087-B**


	10. Chapter 2 - Part 1: Not So Puni Problem

**Well, I say it's finally time to begin the Boggly Woods arc! With one Crystal Star in hand, the gang needs to get to Boggly Woods to find the next! Hopefully, they find someone from the other world there! Will they? …maybe…**

**Now, on with the show!**

_Chapter 2: The Great Boggly Tree - Part 1 - A Not So Puni Problem_

Dipper yawned and sat up in his bed. Rubbing his eyes, he looked around. He was still in the Rogueport Inn. Every time he woke up, he expected the previous days to be a dream, but he was proven wrong the following day. He got out of the bed, rubbed the back of his head, yawned again, then grabbed his staff which was up against the wall.

"Another day, another task at hand…" Dipper said to himself. "I wonder what the Boggly Woods is like."

"The pictures of it look really weird." Dipper turned to see Pacifica wide awake and holding her golden scepter. "It's all black and white and stuff."

"When are we heading out?" Dipper asked.

"Mario said we should leave after breakfast." Pacifica answered. "In my opinion, that sounds like a good time to leave."

"Well, let's go what then." Dipper said. The two of them walked down the stairs to the bottom floor of the inn, which was a restaurant/bar. They saw Mario, Koops, Goombella, and Wendy sitting around the middle table. The two joined them, with Mario sitting between Mario and Wendy, and Pacifica sitting between Koops and Goombella.

"Well, morning everyone." Mario said. They all replied with a sleepy, yet heart filled good morning. Mario passed Dipper and Pacifica two menus.

"You know, I do have some coins left over…" Dipper said. "I say I'll order something more expensive…" He scanned the menu. "I'm settling on a Meteor Meal."

"Are you sure?" Goombella asked. "It costs a whopping 30 coins!"

"I'm quite sure, Goombella." Dipper replied. "I have enough."

"Someone's gonna have to order for me." Wendy said. "I don't have any… coins…" She looked over the menu. "I don't even know what any of these foods are."

"I have enough to order for two… wait, I have enough to order for three!" Pacifica said.

"How do you earn so much money?" Koops asked.

"During my free time, I take on troubles at the Trouble Center." Pacifica answered. "Or I go into the Pit of 100 Trials and sell my loot that I find afterwards."

"Wait, you took on the Pit of 100 Trials?!" Goombella was shocked. "That's like, totally extreme! Did you get to the bottom?"

"No, I got to Floor 20." Pacifica said. "I left at that point, but returned with two rare badges." She pointed to her Sleepy Stomp badge and Dipper's Fire Drive badge. "So in short, I make every second I'm here worth it."

"That's… something…" Wendy said.

"Now…" Pacifica looked over her menu. "I'll go with the Love Pudding, and Wendy… you'll have the-"

"Shroom Broth." Wendy said, cutting off Pacifica.

"Wow, that was fast." Pacifica said. "You sure?"

"Positive." Wendy answered. "It looks gross… yet awesome."

"Well, that settles it for both of our orders, I guess." Pacifica said. The others noticed Koops wasn't looking through his menu.

"Koops, why aren't you ordering anything?" Dipper asked.

"I'm saving my appetite for the Love Pudding." Koops said.

"But, you didn't order a Love Pudding…" Goombella said.

"I know. I'm having it with Pacifica." Koops said.

"The very name of the dish described us!" Pacifica said. "We're in love!"

"Whoa, didn't see that coming." Dipper said. "Good for you guys, I guess."

"Doesn't it feel weird to be in love with someone from another world?" Wendy asked.

"Not at all!" Pacifica said. "After a few days here, you think anything is normal." The waitress came by and, after writing down their orders, took their menus and walked off.

"We have a lot in common, so we really hit it off!" Koops said.

"Well, I support you two whole-heartedly!" Goombella said.

"I don't mean to spoil your happiness," Dipper began. "But I think we should set up a plan for Boggly Woods. We know how to get there, but we don't know what's in store for us."

"Dipper, give it a rest with the planning." Mario said. "I would prefer Boggly Woods to be a surprise."

"Fine." Dipper said, sighing. "I did some research, though, and I got some strange information." Dipper pulled out a book and opened it. "Says here that the Boggly Woods is inhabited by small, strange creatures called Punies, and they mainly inhabit this place called the Great Tree." He turned the page. "It also says that long ago, the Puni Elder came into contact with a strange star-shaped gem, and the Punies keep it hidden in the deepest depths of the tree."

"That sounds like that star crystal you guys are after." Wendy said.

"Crystal Star." Dipper corrected her. He closed the book. "Well, after breakfast, we all should immediately head out to the Rogueport Sewers to find the pipe to Boggly Woods."

"You mean you guys are heading there." Wendy said. "I'm staying here."

"What? Why?" Dipper seemed confused.

"You guys can go after your Crystal Stars, I'd rather stay in Rogueport where I can find a way back to our world." Wendy said.

"Wendy, we need all the help we can get in finding the Crystal Stars." Dipper said. "They might be our only way back to out world."

"…I don't know." Wendy said. "…okay, I'll join you guys for now." Dipper smiled.

"Great, the more people in the party, the better." Dipper said. The waitress returned and gave them their breakfast, and for the rest of the morning, the six heroes dined on a fabulous breakfast.

:::::

After their breakfast, the six heroes wasted no time in leaving the inn and running toward the pipe to the Rogueport Sewers. They all jumped inside the pipe and made their way towards the chamber of the Thousand-Year Door. They went down a pipe that led to the room before said chamber, and saw a small little grey creature with four tiny legs and a stem on its head with a green ball attached to it. The creature noticed them and scurried into a small cracked hole in the wall.

"That might be a Puni." Mario said.

"But how do we get to it?" Koops asked.

"Maybe through there?" Dipper pointed to a doorway in the wall next to the hole, but it was blocked off by some bars. Mario, Goombella, Koops, and Pacifica walked over to it and flipped to paper, then walked through the bars.

"Whoa…" Wendy was mystified by the strange power. "Unlike you guys, I don't think I can change to paper like that…"

"I think I have an idea…" Dipper said. He grabbed Wendy's wrist.

"Wait, what are you-" Wendy was cut off as Dipper flipped into a flat piece of paper, followed by Wendy. They both walked through the bars and returned to normal.

"That felt… weird." Wendy simply said.

"You get used to it." Dipper said. The two walked through the now accessible doorway to meet up with the others.

The room they were now in was a somewhat larger room. It had a pillar in the far left corner that had something on top of it, and in the right corner of the room were three steps that lead up to a platform that went nowhere. This whole room seemed like a dead end. Near the corner pillar, however, sat the strange little gray creature they had seen minutes before. It looked around for a way to escape, seeing as it trapped itself in this room with the group and ran into a dead end. The heroes ran over to it, and it jumped in fright.

"EEEEEEK!" The creature shrieked. "Please, don't eat me!"

"Whoa whoa, calm down!" Dipper said. "We aren't going to eat you!"

"You… you aren't?" The creature calmed down slightly.

"Yeah, we won't eat ya!" Goombella said. "Who are you, anyway?" The creature sighed in relief.

"I… my name's Punio, and I'm a Puni." The creature answered.

"So, Punio, why are you here?" Wendy asked.

"Well, I came here from the Boggly Woods." Punio answered.

"The Boggly Woods?" Dipper asked. "That's the place we're trying to find!"

"Really?" Punio asked. They all nodded. "Then maybe you could help me out with my… predicament?"

"Sure, if it means getting to the Boggly Woods." Koops said.

"You see…" Punio began. "Me and the rest of the Punies, my 'people', I guess, were attacked by some creeps called the X-Nauts, who were looking for something called a Crystal Star. They trapped all of the others, including my little sister, but… somehow, I got out."

"The X-Nauts!" Pacifica said angrily. "We aren't friends with those cross-eyed losers!" She looked down at Punio. "I'd be glad to help."

'Dang, she changed a lot in a few days…' Wendy thought to herself.

"Thank you all very much!" Punio said. "Those X-Naut screwballs won't know what hit them!"

"It's our pleasure to help." Mario said. "But… how do we exactly get to Boggly Woods?"

"Oh, right! This way!" Punio scurried over to the other side of the room toward the entrance, and the gang followed. "Hold on a second…" Punio entered a small hole in the wall.

"And this goes there…" He fiddled around with something in the hole as the others stared in confusion. "AH-HA!" A large clanging noise was heard, then at the top of the stairs, some of the wall vanished, revealing a doorway and two windows going to the right.

"Wow, awesome job, Punio!" Wendy called out. They all jumped up the stairs and went through the doorway, but instead of going right like everyone else, Dipper went left. This part of the tunnel was long and dark, but a light was at the end. Upon exiting at the light, he was all the way on the other side of the room, standing atop the pillar. On the ground was a badge. He picked it up and read the note to himself.

"Damage Dodge. Requires 2 BP to wear. When worn, if the bearer times his or her guard correctly, the damage taken will be lowered." Dipper pinned the badge to his hat. Then, he felt something in his pocket. He took out the piece of paper he found a couple days earlier. Unfolding it, he saw the pine tree, the star piece, the ice bag, the hammer, the pickaxe, and the bandage were all in color, but the other pictures were black and white.

"Strange… does this correspond to the people in the group?" Dipper shrugged and folded the paper back up, then put it in his pocket again. Running back through the tunnel, he returned to the others in little time.

"What were you doing over there?" Mario asked.

"Getting a badge." Dipper answered. In the new room they were in, a pipe sat against the wall. It looked like a gray-brown colored log, and little chips of the tiled ground near the pipe were broken, revealing gray grass with gray weeds growing out of it.

"This pipe should take us to the Boggly Woods!" Punio said. "Come on! Let's go!"

Punio scurried inside the pipe, followed by Mario, Goombella, Koops, Pacifica, and Wendy. Dipper smiled and looked into the pipe. It was like it was beckoning him to continue forward.

"Let's do this." Dipper jumped inside the pipe, ready for the adventure ahead.

**-(End Of Chapter)-**

**I'm back to updating, and it's fun to write again! I'll be posting chapters of this and Gravity Falls: Sinnoh Adventure pretty regularly from now on, then my other stories will follow suite. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, reviews are highly appreciated, and as always…**

**Stay Tuned!**

**~087-B**


	11. Chapter 2 - Part 2: Shadow Amongst Trees

**What's up guys? 087-B here with a new chapter! In the previous chapter, the gang met Punio and found their way to the Boggly Woods! In this chapter, they'll head off to the place that Punio lives to help the Punies!**

**Now, on with the show!**

_Chapter 2: The Great Boggly Tree - Part 2 - Shadows Amongst The Trees_

As Dipper fell through the pipe, it felt as if everything was loosing color and everything around him was turning to shades of black and white. He flew out of the pipe and landed on the ground. Looking around, the area he was in was just that: black and white. The trees were black with white leaves, the flowers had black stems with white petals, and the ground was black with a colored vine pattern on it. The sky was a tinted orange, but not the typical evening orange, but a peaceful, calming orange, like the sky was a painting. Dipper stood up and rubbed his head.

"This place…" Pacifica smiled and looked around. "It's so peaceful!"

"It's like the X-Nauts never even touched this place." Goombella said.

"So, where to next?" Dipper asked.

"The place I live at is called the Great Tree, and it's pretty much haven for us Punies." Punio said. "That is, until the X-Nauts showed up. It's this way, follow me." He scurried down a small path and the others followed. They all entered a clearing and stopped upon seeing the shadow sirens.

"So, according to master Grodus," Beldam began. "That Mario guy and this Dipper kid should be here soon. Are you two prepared, Marilyn and Vivian?"

"Guuuuuuh." Marilyn said.

"Of course I am, sis." Vivian replied.

"Good." Beldam said, "Now, in order to identify them and ambush them, we need to look at the poster of Mario that master Grodus gave us, and the picture of Dipper we confiscated from the prisoner, so Vivian, please hand them over to me."

"Um, sis? You said I was too irresponsible to carry those things, so you took them from me." Vivian said.

"Don't be silly, you have them! Now give them to me!" Beldam said. Vivian didn't respond. "Vivian, what are you fondling over there?"

"Oh, this?" Vivian smiled and held up a necklace. "I found it by a tree over there."

"Picking up someone else's trash and ignoring the responsibility of holding onto those pictures?" Beldam yelled. "How inconsiderate! I'll take this has your punishment!" She grabbed the necklace from Vivian and yanked it away. "Now, until you give me the poster and the picture, you will not get this necklace back! Understand me?"

"…yes sis." Vivian said, frowning. The others walked over.

"Um… is everything okay here?" Dipper asked.

"Shut up, hat boy!" Beldam said angrily. "Leave us be, this is none of your business!"

"Okay…" The group continued forward.

:::::

After a bit of walking, the group saw a large tree in the distance with a log shaped pipe leading to it nearby.

"Oh! There it is!" Punio said happily. "That's the Great Tree!" He scurried into the pipe, and the others jumped in after him.

The Great Tree was indeed great; in beauty and in size. The branches atop the tree hung over the forest floor, creating a beautiful view when looking up. The roots stuck out everywhere, and the tree itself had small, serene waterfalls that poured out of its sides. This tree seemed to be alive on its on if it can provide the right kind of heat and cooling temperatures, contain fresh water, and sustain another form of life inside of it. When the gang walked over, Punio sat in front of a red metal door with a red light hanging over it.

"Um… this door wasn't here before." Punio said. "It's locked, so we can't get through, and the secret entrance is of no use…"

"Why can't we use it?" Koops asked.

"Well, you see…" Punio began. "There's this… thing that blocks it. I don't know what it is, but it's some sort of papery, invisible object."

"So how do we move it?" Pacifica asked.

"We need the help of one of my friends, Madame Flurrie." Punio said. "She's the one who cares for all of the Punies, so she can help remove the thing with her powers."

"Let's go find her then." Mario suggested. "She may be our only way of getting inside the tree."

:::::

After a bit of traveling, the gang found Flurrie's House. Along the way, Dipper found a new badge, one that looked like a big, purple hammer. The note attached said the following:

_Quake Hammer. Requires 2 BP to wear. When worn, the bearer can use Quake Hammer, which is a ground based move that hits all ground bound enemies for 2 damage, and can flip over some enemies, like Koopas, on to their backs. 3 FP are required to use this move._

Entering the house, the six heroes found a beautiful decorative foyer, with stairs on each side leading up to the second floor. They all walked up the stairs and a door was against the back wall.

"Well, here it is." Punio said. "Madame Flurrie should be in there."

"Oh?" A feminine voice said from behind the door. "Is that you? Punio?"

"Madame Flurrie?" Punio asked. "We need your help! These guys have taken over the Great Tree, and we need your powers to get inside!"

"Oh, who is this 'we' you speak of?" Flurrie asked.

"This guy named Mario and a boy named Dipper." Punio answered. "So can you please help us?"

"I'd love to help you, sweetie, but alas, I cannot." Flurrie answered.

"What? Why?" Punio was confused.

"My necklace has gone missing, and I simply cannot go anywhere without it." Flurrie answered. "If you can find my necklace and return it to me safely, then I shall help you."

"Alright, Madame Flurrie!" Punio said. "We'll try!"

"I'm pretty sure I know where to find this necklace." Dipper said as the gang left the house. "Back to the entrance of the woods."

:::::

"Ah, here we are!" Beldam pulled out the poster of Mario and the picture of Dipper. "Vivian, you get double punishment for not telling me that I had these!"

"But sis, I-" Vivian began, but was cut off.

"Do you want me to triple your punishment?" Beldam asked.

"No, sis…" Vivian said. Beldam set the two items down, and the sirens gasped.

"These look like Mustache Man and Hat Boy!" Beldam said. "Grrr, we'll never ambush them at this rate!"

:::::

The group dashed to the entrance of the woods, and upon seeing the shadow sirens, they readied themselves.

"You there!" Beldam was the first to notice them. "Mario and Dipper, I presume? Hand over the map and your Crystal Star!"

"Wait, if you want those things…" Dipper gasped. "You guys must work for the X-Nauts!" He took out his staff.

"Of course we do!" Beldam said.

"Who are you punks anyway?" Pacifica asked angrily, taking out her scepter.

"We are…" Beldam began.

"The three…" Marilyn continued, speaking the only eligible words that may ever come out of her mouth.

"Shadow beauties!" Vivian finished.

"Yes! The three shadow- wait…" Beldam turned to Vivian. "Vivian, you dolt! We're the three shadow sirens! Not shadow beauties! I don't see two beauties in front of me, I see one, and then there's you, and you're plug-ugly!"

"Sis…" Vivian stuttered, tears forming in her eyes.

"Shut up, you nincompoop!" Beldam yelled. "Let's take these fools on!"

"Guuuuuuuh!" Marilyn said.

"Yes, sis…" Vivian said. She followed Beldam and Marilyn toward the heroes.

The battle began.

Beldam threw an icy punch at Mario, who in turn took out his hammer to deflect the attack. He swung it and landed a blow on Beldam, then used a Power Jump on Marilyn.

Vivian disappeared into the shadows, then reappeared behind Dipper. She threw a punch and landed a blow on the back of his head. He fell to the ground with a thud, but got back up again and swung his staff, but he missed Vivian and hit Beldam instead.

"Grrr, enough of this!" Beldam held out her hands and an icy wind flew out from her palms, freezing Goombella and Koops.

"C-C-Cold!" Goombella and Koops cried out.

Dipper looked over at Wendy, who was standing in the sidelines of the battle.

"Wendy, we need help!" Dipper called out.

"I don't know what to do!" Wendy replied. Marilyn came over and attempted to shock her with lightning, but she rolled out of the way and landed a punch on Marilyn's head.

"Nice one!" Dipper smiled and held the thumbs up, then proceeded to whack Vivian with his staff. Wendy smiled back and continued her assault on Marilyn.

Vivian managed to dodge a hit from the staff and cast a fire spell, sending Dipper flying backwards on to the ground. He got up and growled.

"Time to finish this!" He held up his staff toward the air as it ignited on fire. It transformed into a glowing red hammer as a fire ball fell from the sky.

"**Fire Drive!**" Dipper smashed the fireball with the hammer and it sent waves of fire at the three sirens, inflicting massive damage and knocking them out. The staff returned to normal and was no longer on fire, and Goombella and Koops were no longer frozen. Dipper smiled.

"Game, set, and match!" They all put their weapons away.

"How could we have been… beaten?!" Beldam, Marilyn, and Vivian weakly stood up. "Retreat!" Beldam and Marilyn dashed off. Vivian began to run as well, but dropped the necklace. She took one last look at it before running off with her sisters. Pacifica picked up the necklace.

"Come on, guys." Pacifica said. "Let's get this thing back to Flurrie."

:::::

Once the group arrived at Flurrie's House for the second time, they quickly went upstairs to Flurrie's room.

"Madame Flurrie, we have the necklace!" Punio said.

"Oh, you do?" Flurrie said from behind the door. "Thank you, darling! If you could, may you please leave it in front of the door?"

Pacifica set it in front of the door. It opened up a tiny bit, and the necklace was pulled inside. About 30 seconds later, a disco ball appeared from the ceiling, and the room became pink with the added light. Slow, romantic music began to play as the door to Flurrie's room opened. Out stepped a blue wind spirit with green earrings and a golden necklace.

"Oh, are you the one who helped get my necklace back?" She took note of Dipper, who stood in front of her. He began sweating and blushing. She puckered her lips and moved toward him, preparing to kiss him. He jumped out of the way, and Flurrie landed a kiss on Mario's cheek. Mario blushed heavily.

"Oh my, thank you so much, you handsome man, you." Flurrie stepped away from Mario. The girls chuckled.

"Well, let's get back to the Great Tree now." Wendy said. "I bet with Flurrie's powers, we can get inside."

"Then let's go." Dipper said. His blushing had died down.

They all left the home with Flurrie as a new addition to the group, changing the total number of heroes from six to seven. As they went toward the Great Tree, they were ready to help the Punies however they could.

:::::

"I can't believe this is happening." The light-gray Puni Petuni said to herself. "Big brother's gone, and these strange X-Naut freaks took over the tree." A Puni scuttled over to her.

"You okay, Petuni?" It asked.

"Huh? Oh, I'm fine." Petuni replied.

"Do you think we'll ever get out of here?" The Puni asked.

"To be honest…" Petuni began. "I have no idea."

**-(End Of Chapter)-**

**Well, the page this chapter ended on was Page 103, so this has already become the longest story I've ever written. I hope you've enjoyed this chapter, reviews are highly appreciated, and as always…**

**Stay Tuned!**

**~087-B**


	12. Chapter 2 - Part 3: Inside The Tree

**Hello, chaps and mates! 087-B here again with a new chapter! I've been writing a lot more lately, haven't I?**

**Now, on with the show!**

_Chapter 2: The Great Boggly Tree - Part 3 - Inside The Tree_

The seven heroes returned to the Great Tree in little time. Punio led Flurrie up a root toward an area above the metallic door. The others watched as Flurrie began to blow a massive gust of wind, blowing the 'thing' away and revealing a small little hole with a massive sign over it with the words SECRET ENTRANCE on it. Punio scurried inside, and in a few moments, the red light above the door changed to green. It opened and Punio came out.

"Ta-da!" Punio said. The others smiled and clapped.

"Well, we can get inside now." Mario said.

They all entered the tree. The ground was black with a brown-white vine pattern all over it, and white bushes sprouted in some places. Some statues sat in the middle with symbols on them and Puni sculptures on top.

"Huh… where is everyone?" Punio asked. Then, a door on the other side of the room opened, and two X-Nauts stepped out.

"It's Mario! And his gang of losers!" One of the X-Nauts shouted.

"We should report this to Lord Crump straight away!" The other one said.

"No way! If we finish him off right here, we're sure to get a huge reward!" The first one shouted. They rushed the group.

"Take THIS!" Pacifica twirled her scepter around and smacked one X-Naut in the head, making it dizzy and causing it to stumble around.

Goombella used a headbonk on the dazed X-Naut, and Koops finished it off with a power shell, hitting the second X-Naut as well. Wendy landed an uppercut on the second X-Naut, but it countered by body slamming Wendy. She fell to the ground.

"Wendy!" Dipper called out. He activated Power Smash and smacked the X-Naut, sending it flying. When it landed on the ground, it was badly beaten.

"F-Forget this…" It stuttered, weakly standing up. The other one ran out of the room through the door it came in from. "W-We'll just h-hinder your p-progress and report this to C-Crump…" The wobbly X-Naut stumbled through the door and shut it. The light above it changed from green to red, indicating it was now locked.

"Well, drat." Wendy said. "Now what do we do?" Punio noticed a Puni pop out from behind one of the statues.

"Whoa! Who's that?" Punio scurried behind the statues, and in moments, 10 more punies scurried out along with Punio.

"Wow, come of you guys are okay!" Punio cheered.

"Well look who it is!" A rather larger, overweight Punio scuttled over to Punio, having an orange ball sticking out of its head. "It's the coward Punio who ran away!"

"Puniper!" Punio said angrily. "I didn't run away, I went to find help! Look!" Punio gestured to Mario, Goombella, Koops, Flurrie, Dipper, Pacifica, and Wendy.

"Who cares! We can't trust these guys!" Puniper said.

"How did you guys get out anyway?" Punio asked.

"While those X-Naut freaks, or whatever they're called, led us to the cells," Puniper began. "I shoved one of the others in the way to trip a guard, then we made a break for it."

"Puniper, you jerk! You sacrificed one of our friends to save your own life?!" Punio was in shock and disbelief. "That's just cold!"

"Well I'm still proud of my choice." Puniper said.

"Where are the others?" Punio asked.

"Locked in some cages in the other chamber." Puniper answered.

"Then help us free them!" Punio said. "We'll need all the help we can get if we want to overthrow the X-Naut army!"

"Nuh-uh, no way." Puniper said. "I'll tell you what, if you can free the elder and the rest of the Punies from there cages, then we'll join this 'revolution' of yours."

"Alright then, we have a deal." Punio said. Then the 9 other normal Punies scurried behind the statues to hide along with Puniper. Punio turned to the 7 heroes.

"What now?" Pacifica asked.

"Well, there's a pipe over here." Punio led the group to a log pipe near the locked door the X-Nauts retreated to moments earlier. "If we go up here, we might find the cage the other Punies are held in."

"Okay then, here we go!" Dipper slid inside the pipe, followed by Punio, Mario, Pacifica, Wendy, Goombella, Koops, then finally Flurrie.

:::::

The heroes and Punio jumped out of a pipe and landed in another chamber, this one having a large red cage and a separate large blue cage in the back wall. As soon as they all exited the pipe, Punio ran over to the red cage. Inside was an older looking Punio with a purple ball coming out of its head, as well as wearing a small black robe.

"Elder!" Punio said. "You're okay!"

"Is that you Punio?" The Elder slowly scuttled to the bars of the cage.

"Elder, I got help and came here to rescue you!" Punio said.

"Ah, that's nice. Thank you Punio." The Elder said.

"Where are the others?" Punio asked.

"The others? Let's see…" The Elder began mumbling to herself.

"P-Punio?!" A voice called out in disbelief. Punio recognized the voice and scurried over to the blue cage, seeing Petuni and at least 99 other Punies inside.

"Petuni! You're safe!" Punio said happily. "I've brought help, and I'm going to save you guys!"

"Thank you Punio! It's good to see you showing your care for our species!" Petuni noticed the 7 heroes, particularly Dipper, Pacifica, and Wendy. "Wow, you three look like the one we found!"

"Huh?" Dipper, Pacifica, and Wendy were all equally confused. What did Petuni mean by 'the one they found'?

"…Dipper?" A voice asked. Dipper squinted his eyes. Against the back wall of the cage was a figure that slowly stood up, covered in the shadows. It stepped forward slowly, letting the light reveal its face. Dipper's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Candy?!" Dipper shouted. "You're here too?!"

"It is so good to see someone I know!" Candy happily walked over to the bars of the blue cage. "What is this place?"

"It's called the Great Tree, and its currently being invaded." Dipper explained. "There's a lot more to it, but I'll have to explain later. For now, we have to find the keys to these cages and get everyone out of here."

"I understand." Candy noticed Pacifica and narrowed her eyes. Pacifica noticed.

"Hey hey hey, I'm a hero here." Pacifica tried to defend herself.

"Are you sure I can trust you?" Candy asked.

"Yeah, I've changed." Pacifica said. "I'm sorry for how I treated you before, Candy." Candy smiled.

"I trust you, Pacifica." Candy said. "Is anybody else with you?"

"No, actually." Wendy answered. "You're the latest person we've found."

"Okay." Candy said. "You go on and find the keys you need, I shall await your return right here." She sat down in the cage.

"Okay Candy, we'll be back for you and the Punies!" Dipper smiled and walked off into a room on his left, followed by the others.

'I cannot believe I am surrounded by Punies!' Candy thought in her mind. 'Who knew such legendary creatures were real!'

:::::

Entering the next room, they all saw an unconscious X-Naut lying on the ground in the middle of the room.

"Whoa… someone's been in here." Dipper said. Then, Ms Mowz jumped out of a bush nearby.

"Ah, we meet again, Mr. Mustache and Hat Boy." Ms Mowz said deviously.

"M-Ms Mowz!" Dipper blushed a little. "What are you doing here?"

"Me? I came here in search of treasure, but I've found something much more interesting." Ms Mowz answered. "I assume you're all here looking for the Crystal Star?"

"How did you know a Crystal Star was here?" Mario asked.

"A thief simply has to know where treasure is, no matter where they are." Ms Mowz answered. "I'll give you some information on the location of the Crystal Star, however, as it is of no use to me."

"So you know where it is?" Goombella asked.

"Indeed." Ms Mowz replied. "The Crystal Star is held deep within the tree, down at the very bottom, but that's all I know." She slowly walked over to the group, then kissed Dipper and Mario's cheeks. "We shall soon meet again…"

"Geez, what a flirt!" Goombella said annoyed. Then Ms Mowz jumped onto a box, then jumped into a hole and out of the tree. Dipper and Mario blushed hard, their faces turning red.

"You dog!" Wendy chuckled and punched Dipper's shoulder playfully. "You're getting all the ladies!"

"Heh heh, yeah…" Dipper sheepishly chuckled, blushing harder. His blushing faded, along with Mario's, as soon as the unconscious X-Naut began to stir. It jumped up and looked around before noticing the group.

"Ah-ha! It was you who knocked me out, wasn't it?!" The X-Naut was about to continue before Mario smack it in the head with a hammer, sending it flying out of the tree through the hole Ms Mowz came in from.

"Well, look what he dropped!" Dipper smiled and picked up a red key. "We can free the Puni Elder now!"

"That's great!" Punio said. "Let's go!" He scurried back toward the red cage followed by Mario, Dipper, Goombella, Pacifica, Koops, Wendy, and Flurrie. Dipper shoved the red key into the lock on the door of the cage and twisted, pulling open the large red door, then they all entered the open cage.

"Elder! You're free now!" Punio said happily as he entered the cage.

"SILENCE!" The Puni Elder shouted, startling everyone in the cage. "Punio, you cowardice! You fled instead of trying to save your fellow kind!"

"No, you don't understand, Elder!" Punio said. "I went to get help! I didn't run away!"

"How dare you interrupt your elders!" The Elder shouted. "Now, let me explain why you shouldn't interrupt and why you shouldn't have ran away…"

**-{Two Hours Later}-**

"…and that is why you must not run away." The Elder finished her explanation, with everyone else asleep and only her and Punio awake.

"Now!" The Elder shouted, waking everyone up. "What were you going to say, Punio?"

"I was trying to tell you, Elder," Punio began. "That I brought help to save you and the rest of the Punies!" He gestured to the seven heroes behind him.

"Ah, I see." The Elder simply said. "Well then, let's not waste anymore time." She scurried out of the cage and down the log pipe nearby, followed by Punio, Flurrie, Wendy, Koops, Goombella, Pacifica, and Mario. Dipper approached the pipe.

"These Punies are strange…" he began. "But they're the key to finding the second Crystal Star." And with that, he jumped down the pipe to meet up with the rest of the group.

**-(End Of Chapter)-**

**Whew, this chapter took a while to write! I hope you liked it! Also, the group has found Candy! What role will she play? A hero, why wouldn't she be? Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, reviews are highly appreciated, and as always…**

**Stay Tuned!**

**~087-B**


	13. Chapter 2 - Part 4: Start Of Revolution

**Hey guys, 087-B here with a new chapter of Gravity Falls: The Thousand Year Door! In the last chapter, the gang entered the Great Tree, found Candy, and freed the Puni Elder! What will happen in this chapter? Read on and find out!**

**It will be hard to write the later portions of the Boggly Woods arc considering that it will be mostly puzzles and such, which would be very difficult to write out in a story, so I'll skip over them. Maybe the arc will end next chapter? Who knows.**

**Now, on with the show!**

_Chapter 2: The Great Boggly Tree - Part 4 - The Start Of A Revolution_

The seven heroes, Punio, and the Puni Elder returned to the main chamber of the Great Tree. In the middle of the chamber was Puniper, who was waiting for them.

"Well, you managed to free the Elder, I'll give you props for that." Puniper said. "But you didn't free the rest of the Punies, so the deal is off. We aren't joining your revolution or anything like that."

"SUCH INSOLENCE!" The Elder shouted, startling everyone, even Puniper.

"Huh? What do you mean, Elder?" Puniper asked with a trembling voice.

"Do you not see, Puniper?" The Elder was furious. "Punio risked his life going out into the open world to gather help, and he managed to rescue me, and he swore to some back for the others once they get the key! That takes courage! And if you cannot appreciate it, then you are nothing but a helpless hog who favors ignorance!"

"O-Okay Elder, I get it." Puniper said, his voice shaking a little. "Okay, we'll join the group for now, but you gotta make sure you free the rest of the Punies, okay?"

"Yeah, that's fine." Punio said.

"Still, our chances of victory are pretty slim." Puniper said. "We've barely been able to do anything about this invasion ever since those X-Naut freaks caged some of our best warriors and joined forces with the Jabbies!"

"Jabbies?" Dipper was confused. "What are those?"

"Little winged creatures that aren't much bigger than the Punies." Punio answered. "We were once allies with them, but we haven't seen them since the invasion happened."

"I hope you guys become allies again once this is over." Koops said.

"Thanks." Punio said. They all began walking off before the Elder stopped them.

"WAIT!" The Elder shouted. Everyone was startled again, and the seven heroes tripped and fell to the floor. "There is something very important I need to give you!"

"What is it, Elder?" Dipper asked, standing up and wiping dirt off of his clothes, although most of that dirt was probably from his previous adventures in this world. The Elder held out an orange orb that resembled the sun.

"This is the Puni Orb, it is a symbol of our ancestry." The Elder said. "Take it, you may need it." Mario took it and put it away.

"What may we need it for?" Mario asked.

"There are multiple shines throughout this tree with indents in them." The Elder explained. "If you put the Puni Orb in said indent, then the Punies you have will flock to it if they can get to it." The others nodded and walked off, returning into the log pipe nearby to hopefully make progress in the tree.

:::::

The group entered a small chamber that was a narrow path that hung high above another floor below, and said path had many twists and turns. On the wall near the pipe and on the far right wall were two entrances.

"Which way do we go?" Goombella asked. "Should we split up?"

"No, I think we should all go one way." Dipper said. "Like Punio said, the X-Nauts teamed up with these Jabbi guys, and we don't know how much of a threat they could be."

"Good point." Mario said. "Let's prepare ourselves." He took out his hammer.

"Right." Dipper took out his staff and Pacifica took out her scepter.

They all entered through the entrance closest to them, and once inside, they found themselves in a large, long chamber with a hive like structure on the back wall with red flashing lights on it. All of a sudden, a siren started blaring, and out from the hive emerged 10 little black bird looking creatures with gray beaks and wings.

"It's a 10-Jabbie Squadron!" Punio said. "Come on, guys! We can beat them! CHARGE!" All of the Punies rushed into battle, followed by the 7 heroes, knocking the Jabbies left and right until they were all down for the count.

"Wow, we did it!" Punio cheered. "Quickly, let's destroy this thing!"

All of the Punies rushed inside as the room rumbled and shook before the hive-like structure exploded into bits, now revealing an entrance that the 7 heroes could get through. Walking inside, the group found themselves in a slightly smaller chamber with a lower area and a chest in the middle, as well as some strange statues with symbols on them.

"Whoa, weird statues." Wendy said. "What do you think they mean?"

"I don't know, but they're probably from ancient Puni lore." Dipper said. He jumped off of a ledge and walked over to the chest. He opened it and inside was a blue key.

"Ah-ha!" Dipper smiled and held up the blue key. "We found it!"

"Now we can free the rest of the Punies!" Punio said happily.

"And we can rescue our friend!" Pacifica pointed out. "Let's hurry back there!"

:::::

"…and they'll never come back and that's that and what's gonna happen to us and…" A Puni in the blue cage was stopping its story that it was telling Petuni. "Hey, by the way… what's that thing you've been holding on to so tightly, Petuni?"

"It's a mushroom…" Petuni said, showing a mushroom that appeared to have all of the life sucked out of it, called a Dried Shroom.

"Oh. Not to be, you know, rude, but it looks all dry and wrinkly and gross." The Puni said. Petuni put the Mushroom away.

"Yeah, yeah, I know… I picked it so I could give it to my brother to eat." Petuni said. "But then I got captured and stuck in here, and after a few days it dried out…"

"Oh, really? Great story." The Puni said sarcastically. "Anyway, don't worry so much. All my complaining aside, I'm sure Punio and those others will return."

Just then, the group emerged from the pipe nearby. Dipper walked over to the door of the blue cage and stuck the blue key inside of the lock on the door. He turned it and pulled the door open with some force, freeing all of Punies as well as Candy. They all rushed out.

"Ah, thank you Dipper!" Candy said, giving a hug to Dipper, making him smile sheepishly and blush a little. Candy pulled away from the hug. "Now all you have to do is tell me what this place is. Where exactly are we?"

"I'll explain it to ya, come on." Dipper and Candy excused themselves from the group as they sat down nearby. "Okay, this is kinda long-winded, so are you ready?"

"I'm ready." Candy said.

"Okay…" Dipper took a breath before starting. "You see, me and Mabel found this strange pipe in the Gravity Falls forest, and it sucked me and Mabel and everyone from Gravity Falls into it. Me and Pacifica woke up on a raft in the middle of an ocean, but in a whole new world called the Mushroom Kingdom, and we ended up in a port town called Rogueport. There, we met this man named Mario-" He gestured to Mario. "-and Pacifica and I joined up along with him and Goombella-" He gestured to Goombella. "-to find her university professor. Once we did, we discovered this legendary place called The Thousand-Year Door that requires seven gems called the Crystal Stars to open. We all went off to search for them and found one Crystal Star and Wendy along the way. Now we're here in this place called the Great Tree in search of the second Crystal Star, as well as trying to help the Punies fight against the X-Nauts, an evil organization that wants to find the Crystal Stars and use them for evil purposes." Candy stared blankly as soon as Dipper finished.

"…I think I understand." Candy responded after a moment.

"You sure?" Dipper asked. Candy nodded. "So do you want to join us in our battle against the X-Nauts and find the Crystal Stars?"

"Will we get back home?" Candy asked.

"Maybe, but we just have to wait and see!" Dipper said. Candy smiled.

"Then I would very much like to join you in your quest!" She said.

"That's great!" Dipper said. "Come on, let's regroup." They walked back over to the group.

"Well, we've freed all of the Punies and my sister is safe!" Punio said happily.

"What do we do now?" Koops asked.

"Well, if there was a 10-Jabbi squadron, then there's sure to be a 100-Jabbi squadron!" Dipper said. "The X-Nauts would put a weak team and a strong team together. So, with 101 Punies and 8 others, making 109 fighters, we might be able to beat them!"

"Wow, talk about smart." Pacifica muttered.

:::::

They all made their way back to the long narrow overhang-like curved path, but this time went towards the right wall towards the second entrance. Going inside, they found themselves in another Jabbi Fortress chamber, but this time, 100 Jabbies emerged from the hive structure.

"You were right Dipper, it's a 100-Jabbi squadron!" Punio said. "Come on guys! Let's get 'em! CHARGE!" All of the Punies and the 8 heroes rushed the group of Jabbies, constantly attacking without giving in. Eventually, all of the Jabbies were knocked out, landing a success for the group.

"We… we did it?" Punio asked. "It's over? I can't believe we won!"

All of the Punies rushed into the hive structure. Then the room began to shake, and in moments, the structure exploded, revealing an entrance. All of the heroes walked inside. They went down a pipe and continued on for a while before coming into a small room with a pedestal in the middle of the room and an indent inside. Dipper was about to put the Puni Orb inside but Candy stopped him.

"What is it, Candy?" Dipper asked.

"This is a trap, the markings are not correct." Candy said.

"How would you…?" Dipper was confused at Candy's sudden knowledge of the Puni lore.

"In my home country, Punies are considered mythical creatures." Candy said. "I've studied them enough to know that this is a trap."

"It can't be, why else would it be here?" Dipper placed the Puni Orb inside of the indent.

"No no no NO!" Candy's eyes widened as the room began to shake. "Run!" A large cage began to fall from the ceiling.

"Whoa!" Dipper panicked and made a break for it, but the cage slammed into the ground, one bar crushing his right ankle. "AUGH!" He fell back and clutched his leg as his ankle throbbed in pain, the blood dripping on to the ground.

"Dipper!" Mario grabbed and began to pull Dipper inside the cage.

"AUGH!" Dipper screamed in pain as his leg was still trapped. One more tug and it came free, but not in the way you'd expect. The ligaments and bones tore and broke, the skin snapping. His foot came detached as his leg began bleeding heavily.

"Whoa!" Pacifica pulled out rags and began covering the wound. "You didn't have to yank his foot off, Mario!"

"Well sorry! I was only trying to free him!" Mario also tried to tend to the wound, along with everyone else, even the Punies. Meanwhile, Dipper was frantically gasping for air, his vision shifting from clear to blurry constantly, and trying to not lose consciousness was slowly not becoming an option.

"G-GOD!" Dipper screamed.

"Just hang in there, lad!" Flurrie said. Then, Lord Crump and two X-Nauts appeared in front of the cage.

"I knew it!" Lord Crump snorted. "You guys were stupid enough to fall for my fake pedestal gag!"

"Lord Crump!" Goombella shouted angrily. "It's cause of you Dipper lost a foot!"

"Huh?" Lord Crump noticed the detached foot near his feet. "Whoa… talk about a bonus!"

"What do you mean a bonus?!" Wendy yelled. "This is a serious injury! He needs a doctor! A prosthetic foot!"

"So? Not my problem." Lord Crump scoffed. "Now if you excuse me, I'll be off." He walked away with the two X-Nauts following close behind him.

"So… what now?" Pacifica asked.

"Someone needs to slip through these bars and find a way out of here." Mario said. "A doctor will also prove useful." Pacifica flipped herself into paper and walked through the bars.

"I'll be back." She said, sprinting off toward a nearby pipe and jumping into it, going downward.

"He's out cold." Koops said, looking at Dipper's unconscious body.

"Are you sure? He looks dead." Goombella said, padding up the wound more.

"Only time will tell if he survives…" Candy said glumly.

:::::

Pacifica exited the pipe in a lower level and found a white switch. She pressed it, and the whole tree began to rumble, causing something to happen in a different part of the tree. She then noticed four statues lining the back wall with pictures on them: A picture of the sun, a picture of the moon, a picture of a Puni, and a picture of a star in that order.

"These look like the statues all the way back where the blue key was…" Pacifica put two and two together. "I think I know where to go next."

**-(End Of Chapter)-**

**God, Dipper got his foot detached from his leg! Will he survive? What will happen? Will he be able to take down Lord Crump with such an injury? I hope you enjoyed this chapter, reviews are highly appreciated, and as always…**

**Stay Tuned!**

**~087-B**


	14. Chapter 2 - End: Taking Back The Tree

**Hello mates, chaps, and all alike, 087-B here, bringing you a new chapter of this story! I've been hoping to get to this point, as I do like the Chapter 2 Arc, but it sadly comes to an end in this chapter. For those who don't remember, but most of you honestly do, Dipper lost his right foot in the last chapter, and is in desperate need of medical care. Pacifica volunteered to go out and find a doctor and an escape route, and that is where we left off…**

**Now, on with the show!**

_Chapter 2: The Great Boggly Tree - Part 5 - Taking Back The Tree_

Pacifica made her way back to where the group found the blue key, and now 4 white switched were inside the room, resting in front of the strange statues. She hopped down and walked over to the switches.

"Wait a second, these statues…" She remembered the pattern she saw in the other chamber. "It must be a pattern." Pacifica pressed each switch until the statues were in the order that she had seen before. The room began to shake as the switches disappeared and the statues… began to roll up like paper and fade away, revealing an entrance.

"Talk about weird." Pacifica walked through the entrance and found herself in a chamber that had a large treasure chest inside. "Whoa…" She opened the chest and pulled out a pair of light blue boots. "…I came all the way back here for boots?!" She mumbled something to herself and took the boots with her anyway. "Now I just need to find a doctor."

:::::

"How's he looking?" Goombella asked.

"Not good, he hasn't woken up at all." Mario said. "Wendy, can you take over?"

"Why do you need me?" Wendy asked.

"I'm going to go and find Pacifica." Mario said. "And I'm taking Candy with me."

"So you want me to keep Dipper from dieing?" Wendy asked. Mario nodded. "I can do that."

"Good." Mario stood up and grabbed Candy's wrist.

"Wait, what are you-" Candy was cut off as she and Mario were now as flat as paper. They both walked through the bars of the cage and returned to normal. "How did you-" 

"Long story." Mario said. The two sprinted off to find Pacifica.

"Um, Wendy?" Punio got the teenage girl's attention.

"Yeah Punio?" Wendy said.

"How can I say this…" Punio hesitated a bit. "…Dipper's in a coma."

"What?!" Koops trembled a little as he began hyperventilating.

"Oh man, he could die!" Goombella said.

"What do we do?" Wendy asked.

"All we can do for now is wait." Punio said.

:::::

Pacifica sprinted across the narrow walkway, heading back towards the chamber containing the cage that her friends were trapped in. As she sprinted, she took a misstep and slipped, fall off of the path… but she was quickly saved by something. Looking up, she saw a hand holding onto her wrist, and the hand belonged to Candy. She pulled her up.

"Thanks Candy." Pacifica said.

"No problem, friend." Candy said. Mario noticed the boots.

"Wow, a pair of Deluxe 2004 Super Boots!" He said in excitement, grabbing the boots. "These are rare, and expensive!"

"You can have them." Pacifica said. "Honestly, I don't know what they do or why anyone would wear them." Mario slipped off his current boots and put on the Super Boots.

"A pair of Super Boots are stronger than the average pair of boots!" He said. "They deal more damage, they are more light in weight, and they allow you to do this!" Mario jumped up into the air, did a mid-air somersault, then slammed down on to the ground. This technique was called a Spin Jump.

"We might be able to use that pair of boots to break our friends and the Punies out of the cage!" Candy said. "I saw a wooden board in there that looked pretty weak! We might be able to smash through it!"

"But how will that help?" Mario asked.

"There's a chamber below the cage." Pacifica said. "If we break through that board, we can get them all down there and escape."

"Then that is our plan." Candy said.

"How's Dipper doing?" Pacifica asked.

"Not good." Mario said. "But he isn't dead, so we just have to find a doctor, or some safe place for him to stay."

"Then what do we do next?" Candy asked.

"I'll ask the elder about a doctor, if there is one." Pacifica said. "Meanwhile, you two go back and free the others, then try and find that Crystal Star. I'll meet up with you later."

"Okay, Pacifica." Mario said, and he and Candy sprinted back toward the cage, with Pacifica sliding into a pipe to go back to find the Puni Elder.

Mario and Candy entered the cage chamber, flipped to paper, and entered the cage. Mario did a Spin Jump on the wooden board and smashed it into pieces, creating a hole that they all jumped down, Wendy holding onto Dipper's unconscious body.

"Well, the Punies are free now." Mario said.

"And so are we!" Goombella said. "Great job, guys! Now let's go find that Crystal Star!"

:::::

The gang had entered another chamber, the largest chamber yet. It was a giant octagon-shaped room, with Puni statues surrounding it against the walls. One in the center of the back wall had a large half-circle on top of it, filled with water, and in the middle of the room was a hexagon-shaped panel with a pedestal nearby, an indent for the Puni Orb inside.

"Do you think this is where the Crystal Star is?" Wendy asked.

"Looks like it." Koops said. "I mean, fancy things are usually in fancy places."

"I think we need to place the Puni Orb inside of this pedestal." Candy said, walking over to the pedestal. She placed the Puni Orb inside of the pedestal, and the whole room began to shake violently. Actually, the whole tree shook violently, startling almost every living thing inside. Then, it stopped, and a sparkling noise was heard. Looking up, the gang saw a spinning, shimmering, green Crystal Star emerge from the pool of water in the half-circle. It floated down toward the ground and hovered in the air, still rotating in constant 360 degree circles.

"We found it!" Goombella cheered.

"You mean that is this 'Crystal Star' thing you have been looking for?" Candy asked.

"Yep, that's the one!" Koops said. "Now let's go grab it before-" He was cut off as Lord Crump dashed toward the Crystal Star, appearing seemingly out of nowhere. He jumped up and grabbed it.

"Lord Crump! Not you again!" Mario said angrily.

"Who?" Wendy and Candy asked in unison.

"He's this jerk who works for the X-Nauts!" Goombella said. "Give us back the Crystal Star, Crump!"

"You mean this is yours?" Lord Crump asked sarcastically. "I don't think so, it's mine now."

"It's 107 against 1, Crump!" Wendy said angrily. "We can easily take you down!"

"Who said I was gonna fight ya?" Lord Crump pulled out a small silver box-shaped remote with a big red button on it. "I'm just gonna leave ya here with a REMOTE-TIME BOMB DETONATOR!" He pushed the button, and the tree began to shake. "This whole tree will blow up with all of you twerps inside of it in 3 minutes!" He punched the ground and a pipe appeared. "See ya, suckers!" Crump entered the pipe, leaving the heroes and the Punies behind.

"We have to be quick if we want to get out in time!" Candy said. They all entered the pipe and went up. They continued to run, chamber through chamber, until they reached the entrance room. Lord Crump was harassing Pacifica and the Puni Elder, who were trying to block Crump from escaping.

"You aren't leaving, Lord Crump!" Pacifica shouted angrily. "Now hand over the Crystal Star and you won't feel any pain!" She took out her scepter.

"Move out of the way, hags!" Lord Crump commanded.

"HAGS?!" The two of them shouted at the same time. They continued to yell in unison. "I'll have you know that you yourself are no handsome man! We are of utmost beauty and you have no right to call us hags!"

"Geez, I'll leave you two to your hissy fits." Lord Crump turned to run but was cornered by the heroes and the Punies.

"Give it up, Crump! You're cornered!" Candy shouted.

"Fine!" Crump took out the remote and pressed the red button again, and the shaking stopped. "I ain't giving up that easily!"

"What're you gonna do now?" Pacifica asked sarcastically. "It's 109 against only you!"

"Quit using numbers!" Lord Crump shouted. "Try THIS on for size!" He took out another remote that looked like the previous one and clicked the button. A sphere hovered over to him, hovering over his head. The bottom half was made of some kind of red metal, and the top half was made of glass. Lord Crump jumped up inside of it. Then, metallic plates shot out of its sides, creating an 'X' shape.

"Awaken Magnus Von Grapple!" Lord Crump said. The X's shifted to create a box shape and two arms extended from its sides, and two legs extended from its bottom. A large white X appeared on the front as the sphere Lord Crump was in lowered into the top, completing the robot.

"Whoa, that thing is huge!" Koops said.

"Dipper hasn't woken up, he's in no state to fight!" Wendy said.

"Over here!" The Puni Elder gestured to a small alcove behind the statues. Wendy sprinted over and placed Dipper's limp body inside. "He shall be safe in here."

"We must defeat him in order to save the Punies and regain the tree, as well as the Crystal Star!" Candy said.

"Here-we-go!" Mario said as he jumped up and smacked Magnus Von Grapple with his hammer, but the blow barely dented it. In retaliation, Magnus smacked Mario into the ground with its arms, then stomped on him with its foot.

"Leave Mario alone!" Koops shot a shell toss at Magnus' leg, but didn't deal any damage whatsoever, only stunning the robot and giving Mario time to sprint away. Flurrie flew over and tried to attack, but was smacked away by the arm of the robot.

Wendy dashed over and began punching the ankles of the robot, only to wince in pain. Magnus kicked her away, and she landed near the Puni Elder.

"How do I fight this thing?" Wendy asked herself.

"Here, take this." The Puni Elder gave a badge to Wendy. She took it and looked at the note attached.

_Power Plus. Requires 6 BP to wear. When worn, the bearer gets unspeakable powers they can use in battle. Raises attack power greatly._

"How will this help?" Wendy asked, pinning it on her shirt.

"You'll see, my dear." The Puni Elder said. "Now go and fight for the sake of this tree!"

Wendy got up and sprinted toward Magnus. She readied a punch, but before she could make contact, a red, transparent fist appeared behind her. Shocked, she threw the punch early, but as she did, the red fist went soaring towards Magnus, making contact and knocking it over.

"Whoa!" Wendy was surprised at this strange badge and its power. "Take this!" She threw multiple punches, all with red transparent fists appearing, each one making contact and heavily damaging the upper body of the large robot.

"Way to go, Wendy!" Candy cheered. She noticed the Diamond Star nearby. Where did THAT come from? She picked it up, curious. "What is this?"

"That's the first Crystal Star we found!" Goombella said. "I wonder what power is inside." She launched a headbonk, but Magnus countered by smacking her with its arms. Candy stared long and hard at the Diamond Star, trying to figure out what it was or what it did. Then, she realized how to use its power and held it up in the air.

"**Earth Tremor!**" Candy jumped up and slammed the Diamond Star into the ground, creating a massive fissure that shot straight for the crippled robot. It made contact, and the power made the robot explode into pieces, sending Lord Crump flying, landing on the ground, moaning in agony.

The battle was won.

:::::

Lord Crump weakly got up and looked around. All of the heroes and the Punies stared at him angrily.

"Uh… Crump away!" Lord Crump dashed out of the tree, followed by the many X-Nauts. When they all fled, the green Crystal Star lay on the ground.

"Well, thank you all very much for this." The Puni Elder said. "You have rid us of the X-Nauts for good, and you have rescued another of your friends."

"It was nothing, Elder." Pacifica said, showing the thumbs up.

"Now, I understand this is what you were looking for?" The Elder gestured over to the Crystal Star.

"Indeed, that it was we needed to find." Mario said. Wendy walked over and picked up Dipper's body.

"He's still out cold." She said. "If he had been awake, that fight would've been so much faster."

"How?" Candy asked.

"You should have seen him back at the castle." Wendy said. "Man, he's a total powerhouse now."

"Candy, since you seem to know the most about the Punies…" Goombella said.

"And you dealt the finishing blow…" Flurrie said.

"I have the honors?" Candy asked. They all nodded. Candy smiled and walked over to the green Crystal Star. It hovered and spun around her before hovering over her. She held up her hands and grabbed it as all of the others clapped for her.

They had gotten their second Crystal Star.

**-{****End Of Chapter 2****}-**

**The Boggly Woods arc is now complete!**

**Mario and friends joined up with the Punies and successfully bested the X-Nauts, destroying Lord Crump's powerful robot, Magnus Von Grapple! Although Dipper lost his foot, he still has a smidgen of life on him! Will he live? Only time will tell.**

**Now, with Candy on the team and the second Crystal Star in hand, Mario and the others continue their quest to collect the remaining five. However, many of their friends are still lost. But alas, they must worry about getting back to The Thousand-Year Door with the Crystal Star still intact. Where are the rest of their friends? Are Mabel and Princess Peach okay? These questions will be answered as the adventure continues…**

**Save all story progress up to this point?**

**Saving, do not press the power button on your laptop or home button on your mobile device…**

**Your progress has been saved.**

**Stay Tuned!**

**~087-B**


	15. Chapter 2 - Interlude

**Hello everyone, 087-B here! I have a new chapter of this story up! Once I get this chapter done and the next chapter done, I can finally start writing the Chapter 3 arc, and that's one of my favorite arcs! We haven't seen Peach or Mabel in some time, so let's check on them right now, shall we?**

**Now, on with the show!**

_Chapter 2 Interlude - Dance Party_

"What?" Grodus was shocked. "What do you mean you lost?"

"Uh, sir, what I'm saying is, Mario and his gang pierced our defenses." An X-Naut said. "He beat us, destroyed Magnus Von Grapple, and took the Crystal Star for himself."

"He beat the Shadow Sirens, even?" Grodus asked. The X-Naut nodded. "…fine, off with you."

"Uh, yes sir, Grodus dude, sir Grodus, sir." The X-Naut said. It saluted Grodus, then left the room.

"I loathe you all." Grodus said to himself.

:::::

Mabel groggily dragged herself out of the metallic bed. Once again, she couldn't sleep. She checked the clock. It read four in the morning. Sighing, she saw Peach sitting at a table on the other side of the room. She got up and walked over.

"Good morning, Mabel." Peach greeted with a small smile.

"Morning, Peach." Mabel sat in a chair and returned the greeting. "I wonder if TEC will call us in today."

"I wonder why he's helping us." Peach said. "It's obvious that he's sided with the X-Nauts."

"Maybe he isn't?" Mabel suggested. "Although he's a computer, so he's coded to side with the X-Nauts…" Just then, the door to their room opened.

"Must be TEC again." Peach said. "Let's go, we shouldn't keep him waiting." They both walked through the door and down the all. They entered TEC's room, and TEC immediately took note of their presence.

[Ah. Hello, Princess Peach. Hello, Mabel Pines. Good morning to both of you.] TEC greeted.

"Morning, TEC." Mabel returned the greeting. "How'd ya sleep?"

[As I am a computer, I lack the need for sleep.] TEC said. [I simply shut down for the night.]

"So, TEC, it's obvious you called us both in here for a reason." Peach said. "Why did you?"

[I have some news to inform of to the both of you.] TEC said. [Said news regards Mario and Dipper and their quest.]

"Really? What news?" Peach asked.

"Wait, an adventure?" Mabel asked. "Nobody ever said anything about that."

[Please, allow me to explain…] TEC explained the adventure at hand for Mario, Dipper, and the others.

"Okay… I think I get it." Mabel said. "So what news do you have?"

[The heroes have found a new teammate. You might know this person, Mabel.] TEC showed a picture of Candy on his screen.

"They found Candy?!" Mabel asked in disbelief.

[Yes, they have.] TEC said. [This is the current group.] Multiple pictures appeared on the screen. They showed Dipper, Pacifica, Wendy, Candy, Mario, Goombella, Koops, and Flurrie.

"They have Pacifica? Weird." Mabel said.

"How is that weird?" Peach asked.

"Pacifica is, as she calls herself, the most popular girl in Gravity Falls." Mabel said. "She can be a real jerk, so I wonder why she's in the group. She probably doesn't even do anything."

[Quite the contrary, Mabel.] TEC said. A video began rolling, showing a montage of Pacifica fighting off various enemies, including Goombas, Koopas, Fuzzies, Pale Piranhas, and Clefts.

"She's actually doing stuff?" Mabel was surprised. "Wow, this world changes people."

[Now, I have additional, much bigger news.] TEC said. [Would you like to hear it?]

"Yes, I need to know." Peach said.

"Sure, why not?" Mabel said.

[Okay, brace yourselves.] TEC said. [Mario and the others were able to save the Great Tree and recover the second Crystal Star, the Emerald Star.]

"That's great news!" Mabel said happily.

"Indeed!" Peach agreed.

[However, earlier in the adventure there, Dipper suffered a large injury.] TEC said. Mabel's eyes widened. [He lost a foot, and fell into a coma due to major amounts of blood loss.]

"…wh-what?!" Mabel stuttered and shook in fear, beginning to hyperventilate.

[Do not worry, he is still alive.] TEC said. [He is sure to make a full recovery once he is treated.] Mabel simply stared.

"…oh…" Mabel stared at the ground before looking up with a smile. "Of course he'll recover! He's strong!"

"I have faith in him, then." Peach said.

"So, with two out of seven Crystal Stars, where do they go next?" Mabel asked.

[Unfortunately, I cannot answer that.] TEC said. [They have not yet returned to the Thousand-Year Door to reveal the location of the third Crystal Star.]

"Well, where are they now?" Peach asked.

[They are finishing up in the Great Tree.] TEC answered. [Now, may I tell you why I have called you two here?]

"You may TEC, go ahead." Peach said.

[The reason I have called you two down here is because…] TEC began. […as you know, I am a perfect computer, but there are still some things I do not fully understand, and I would like both of your help with understanding certain things.]

"Well, what would you like us to do?" Mabel asked.

[I would like to dance with you both.] TEC said.

"What?! How do we dance with a computer?!" Peach asked in shock.

[I knew you would ask that question, so I have some pre-made AI's that should suffice.] TEC said. All of a sudden, a holographic Peach and a holographic Mabel appeared. [Peach, may I dance with you first?]

"Um… okay TEC." Peach said in confusion. She took the hands of the holographic Peach and ballet music began to play. The two danced gracefully for several minutes, spinning and twirling and slowly shuffling around.

"This is getting boring." Mabel said as she watched from the sidelines. "Do I have to dance to this?"

[No, you do not.] TEC said, finishing up the dance with Peach. The holographic Peach disappeared, and the holographic Mabel walked over to the real Mabel. [How about dancing to this?] Hip-hop music began to play.

"Now this is my jam!" Mabel said with a smile. She began break dancing and spinning around, dancing rapidly. The holographic Mabel attempted keep up and eventually got the hang of Mabel's dancing style. After several more minutes, the music stopped and the holographic Mabel disappeared.

[Well, I thought that was fun.] TEC said. [Fun… I do believe I understand that word now. I posses more than a definition for that word.]

"I'll admit, I had some fun as well, TEC." Peach said.

[Now, if you would like, you may send e-mails to your friends.] TEC said.

"Good, I need to let Mario know of what's happening." Peach said. She walked over to the keyboard and began typing a message. Once it was complete, she hit the send key. After a few moments, the message was sent.

[Message sent.] TEC said. [Now Mabel, would you like to send a message?]

"Heck yeah I would!" Mabel sprinted over to the keyboard and quickly typed a message, then she hit the send key. After a few moments, the message was sent.

[Message sent.] TEC said. [You two should return to your room before the X-Naut guards find you.]

"Okay." Peach said. The door opened to let the two out. Peach walked down the hall towards her and Mabel's room. Mabel was about to exit when she turned to TEC.

"You're a weird computer, TEC." She said, then she left the room and the door closed.

[No, I am perfect.] TEC said. Then the lights dimmed as he shut down for the rest of the day.

:::::

Bowser, Kammy Koopa, and Gideon arrived in Petal Meadows, jumping out of the pipe nearby.

"Wow kid, you know your way around." Bowser said.

"See? I told you my help was invaluable." Gideon said, smirking. "I may not be from this world, but I know a few things about this place."

"How do you know of this world anyway?" Kammy asked.

"That's my personal secret." Gideon said, smirking. "Now, if my memory is correct, the Diamond Star should be located in Petalburg, which is a town not to far ahead."

"And you're sure it's there?" Bowser asked. Gideon nodded.

"As sure as the Earth is round." He said. "Now come, it's this way."

The three of the them continued down the path for a while until they reached the town of Petalburg. Once there, a Koopa came over to greet them, oblivious to who they were.

"Hi there!" The Koopa greeted them. "Welcome to Pe…tal…burg…" His eyes widened, seeing as it was Lord Bowser who stood in front of him. "IT'S KING BOWSER! Everyone, RUN!" The Koopa dashed away, and everyone else ran inside of the homes and locked their doors and windows.

"Well… people seem to know ya." Gideon said. They continued walking before spotting Princess Peach sitting in a window.

"Hey look! It's Princess Peach! Bingo!" Bowser walked over to her. "So, Princess, how'd ya like to dump Mario and come along with me?"

"…" Peach did not respond.

"Ah, the strong silent type, eh? No matter, I'll take you by force if I have to!" Bowser took a step toward Peach.

"Noooooo!" A Koopa shouted. "Pleas don't take my one and only Princess Peach poster!" He jumped up and grabbed the poster, then ran away. Bowser stood there, a dumbfounded look on his face.

"Uh, King Bowser? Maybe you shouldn't beat yourself up over this." Gideon said.

"Great, now I look like the king of guys who talk to posters…" Bowser glumly said.

**-(End Of Chapter)-**

**I know this was short, but I'm glad to have gotten it done in time. I hope you enjoyed seeing Mabel and Gideon again, as I did enjoy writing their parts in! Next time its back to the Thousand-Year Door to locate the next Crystal Star! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, reviews are highly appreciated, and as always…**

**Stay Tuned!**

**~087-B**


	16. Post-Chapter 2: Millennium Door 3

**What's up guys? 087-B here with a new chapter of Gravity Falls: The Thousand-Year Door! Sorry this one took some time to write, I'll try writing at least 1 day quicker than how fast I've been writing in recent times. In the last chapter, we got to see Peach and Mabel again and see them dance! Meanwhile, Gideon along with Bowser and Kammy continue their search for the Crystal Stars, but Gideon seems to have other plans in mind…**

**Anyways, this chapter will be the post-chapter for Chapter 2 and will feature the heroes heading back to the Thousand-Year Door to hold aloft the second Crystal Star and find out the location of the third, then they'll figure out what to do with Dipper's handicapped state… oh, you didn't know? He lost a foot a few chapters ago.**

**Now, on with the show!**

_Post-Chapter 2 - Millennium Door 3_

"Candy, I give you the title or Hero of The Punies!" The Puni Elder said. Everyone gathered outside of the Great Tree, including all of the Punies. Wendy held Dipper, who was still in his comatose state, in her arms.

"I thank you, Elder." Candy said, taking a knee and bowing to the Elder. The Elder handed her the Puni Orb.

"Take this, it will be your reward." The Puni Elder said.

"Thank you very much." Candy said.

"Also, I have something else to give you, and item that should help you battle." The Elder said. She showed Candy a metallic rod that was black and red colored.

"A weapon for me?" Candy asked.

"Yes, you will need it." The Elder said. She grabbed the Puni Orb and placed it on top of the staff. "Punio stole it from an X-Naut guard earlier."

"Thank you." Candy smiled and took the rod.

"Bye everyone! Thanks for the help!" Punio said. "We hope to see you again!"

"As do we!" Pacifica said, and the heroes waved goodbye and walked away from the Great Tree, jumping into the log pipe that took them there.

The group had exited the pipe that led to the Great Tree and began walking toward the log pipe that led to the Rogueport Sewers. As they walked, however, a beeping noise was heard. Candy and Flurrie were surprised, but the others new what was happening. Mario took out his Mailbox SP and turned it on, then opened the email.

_Dear Mario,_

_I'm sure you're very concerned about me… but please know I'm fine! I'm actually more worried about you. The fiends who kidnapped me are searching desperately for the Crystal Stars. I'll try to learn what I can about them. I'll email you again if I uncover anything. OK? You must know I miss you, and I bet Mabel here misses her brother as well. Lately I've dreamt about our days back in the castle. I hope we'll spend carefree days there again soon._

_-Princess Peach-_

"I knew it, another email from Peach." Wendy said.

"Who is this Peach?" Candy asked.

"She's the princess who rules over this world, the Mushroom Kingdom." Pacifica said.

"Ah. I hope she is safe, then." Candy said.

:::::

The group made it back to the Rogueport Sewers in little time. They all exited the log pipe and began walking through the entrance Punio revealed at the start of their Boggly Woods adventure.

"So… What is this thing you keep bringing up? Some kind of door?" Candy asked.

"You'll see it once we get there." Wendy said. "It's pretty cool."

"It must be marvelous! Ancient architecture is such a glorious sight to marvel!" Flurrie said.

"So we have to hold this star up in front of the door as well, right?" Pacifica asked.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure we do." Goombella said. "Just like the last Crystal Star, this one should lead us to the next."

They all entered the Thousand-Year Door chamber. Candy and Flurrie marveled at the strange yet beautiful ancient door. They all walked over to the pedestal in front of the door.

"So what am I supposed to do?" Candy asked, seeing as she still had the Emerald Star.

"You stand on the pedestal." Koops said. "Then you hold up the Crystal Star and the Magical Map, and it should then show the way to the next Crystal Star, I think."

"Okay then." Candy said. Mario gave her the Magical Map, and then she stepped on to the pedestal. She held up both the Magical Map and the Emerald Star, and the light show began.

The blue symbol filled lights surrounded the ground and the pedestal. Candy gasped as it happened. This time, the Emerald Star hovered over its respective circle, with a blue star icon replacing where the Diamond Star once hovered. Candy continued to hold both the Magical Map above her head as a ball of light shot down from the ceiling and exploded onto the map. Then, the symbols stopped, and everything returned to normal. Candy looked over the map and everyone else gathered around to look, save for Dipper, of course. The picture on the map this time was that of a small building on a platform that was hovering in the air, and overlaying it was an image of a golden colored Crystal Star.

"Um… where is this?" Candy asked.

"In the sky? How does that make sense?" Wendy asked.

"Maybe we should go see Professor Frankly about this." Koops said. "He seems to be able to figure these things out easily."

"Yeah, that seems reasonable." Wendy said.

"Who is Professor Frankly?" Candy asked.

"A Goomba professor and archeologist." Goombella answered. "Maybe he can figure out where we go next."

:::::

"Hmm…" Frankly studied the map. "Ah, I know this place! The next Crystal Star is in a city called Glitzville!"

"Glitzville? What's that?" Pacifica asked.

"A city that floats in the sky." Frankly answered.

"A floating city? How is that possible?" Mario asked.

"When you have enough money, you can do anything around here, I guess." Frankly answered. "The city itself is merely a tourist attraction."

"So we finally get to have fun? Sweet!" Goombella said. "Now how do we get there?"

"AHHH!" Dipper shot up, sweating and panting. The others looked at him surprised.

"He's awake and alive!" Flurrie said.

"I… I lost my foot!" Dipper shouted.

"Yeah, but…" Wendy began.

"But what?" Dipper asked, calming down a bit.

"We got you a prosthetic foot." Pacifica said, finishing Wendy's sentence.

Dipper looked down and his eyes widened as he saw three metal rods connecting to a metal foot, all hooked up to his knee and leg. He tried bending it and it worked fine, only hurting a tiny bit.

"You… you guys found a way to save my life?" Dipper asked, standing up.

"Yeah, we can't let anyone die on this adventure." Goombella said. Dipper smiled but then had a moment of realization.

"What did I miss?" Dipper asked.

"Well, we got the second Crystal Star, the Emerald Star." Koops said. "We battled Magnus Von Grapple, the robot of Lord Crump, and won, and we found out where the next Crystal Star is."

"Where is it?" Dipper asked.

"In a flying city called Glitzville." Candy said.

"A flying city?" Dipper said. "Weird. So how do we get to this flying city anyway?"

"That's what we still have to find out." Pacifica said. "Anyways, Professor Frankly, how do we get to Glitzville?"

"That's the unfortunate part." Frankly said. "The only way to get to Glitzville is to arrive in a blimp, and the only way to get tickets is to have acquaintances with the syndicate in this town."

"Wait, we have to make a deal with the mafia just to get a ticket?" Wendy asked. "Geez, this town is harsh."

"It's probably best if only half of us go to the mafia for the tickets." Mario said. "Pacifica, Koops, Dipper, and Candy, you four stay here. Wendy, Goombella, Flurrie and I will go and see if we can get the tickets."

"Okay, sounds good." Dipper said. Mario, Wendy, Goombella, and Flurrie exited the house and walked off, leaving the others behind.

"Is there a place to eat in this town?" Candy asked. "I haven't eaten anything since I was held captive in that cage in the Great Tree."

"Yeah, let's go get something to eat." Pacifica said.

:::::

The four that had stayed behind went to Podley's Bar & Inn to grab a quick bite to eat, wanting a quick break from their big adventure in the Boggly Woods before heading to Glitzville. They all sat at a table in the middle of the room and grabbed their menus.

"So what kind of food is on the menu?" Candy asked.

"It's food relevant only to this world." Dipper said. "It should be pretty different but it's good nonetheless."

"In that case…" Candy scanned the menu. "I shall order the Love Pudding. It appears to be a dessert delicacy."

"Look at you, already getting used to this place." Wendy said.

"If I don't get used to this place quickly, who knows how I'll fare later on." Candy said.

"You know, for once, I'm actually excited to go somewhere to look for a Crystal Star." Dipper said. "Glitzville sounds amazing."

"Yeah, it does." Pacifica said. "Like Frankly said, it's a giant tourist attraction, so maybe we can finally relax and enjoy ourselves."

"But we still need to be ready." Koops said. He eased his voice into a whisper and looked around, then leaned into the group. "Hopefully the X-Nauts don't know that Glitzville is where the star is."

"Well, a tourist trap would be an unlikely place for them to search." Candy said. "If they did find it, however, that would be bad for us." The waiter walked over.

"May I take you order?" He asked.

"I'll take the Couples Cake." Pacifica said, smiling at Koops.

"I shall order the Love Pudding." Candy said.

"And I'll have the Shroom Cake." Dipper said. Then the waiter took all of their menus and walked off. The four of them sat in silence for a moment.

"So… see any good movies lately?" Pacifica asked.

"Not really." Koops said.

"Not after I finished Star Wars Episode V." Dipper said. "It was a good end to the trilogy."

"What's Star Wars?" Koops asked.

"It is a sci-fi movie series about an intergalactic space war." Candy answered.

"Sounds cool, but why is Episode 5 the end of the trilogy?" Koops asked.

"They showed the movies to the public out of order." Dipper said.

"Must've been confusing." Koops said. Dipper nodded.

"It was, but the movies were awesome nonetheless." He said. Then the waiter came back with their food.

"So what do you think we should do once we get to Glitzville?" Pacifica asked.

"We shouldn't worry about that yet." Dipper said. "We'll discuss that later once we arrive there."

"IF we arrive there." Candy said. "We do not know if the others will succeed in getting the tickets."

"Good point." Dipper said. He then felt something vibrating. He pulled the journal out of his backpack and opened it to a new page where a message began to form that was addressed to him.

_Dear Dipper,_

_I heard about your injury… don't die on me bro! Well, you probably won't but… Anyways, congrats on getting that Crystal Star or whatever it's called. Those X-Naut jerky jerks or whatever are becoming mad that you and the others are getting them, though._

_From Mabel_

:::::

Dipper stared out the window in his room in the inn. He stared at a glowing dot in the sky that changed colors from green, to purple, to gold, then back to green. He squinted to see it better, and it appeared to be a flying city.

"So that's Glitzville, eh?" He asked himself. He turned around and saw Mario asleep on his bed. "Today he made a deal with the mob. Told me his story about it, too. That man seems to have adventures every day…" He yawned and sat on his bed, then began to lay back.

"Who knows what Glitzville will be like. Hopefully nothing bad…" Then he drifted off to sleep.

**-(End Of Chapter)-**

**Sorry this took a while to write but I'm glad I got it done. Next chapter the gang will start the Glitzville Arc! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, reviews are highly appreciated, and as always…**

**Stay Tuned!**

**~087-B**


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